A Knightly Surprise
by DragonReader99
Summary: The round table knights have been away on patrol for two months. In that time, Merlin's magic has been revealed to Arthur back in Camelot along with those of a non-evil Mordred. Now the knights have returned to Camelot, and Merlin must intentionally reveal his magic for the first time. Of course, Morgana begins to stir up trouble at the same time. Mid-season 5. AU. Magic Reveal
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I, in no way, shape, or form, own Merlin, BBC, the legend of King Arthur, etc. I am making no profit from this as it is fanfiction and free for anyone to read.

So, this takes place mid-season 5 somewhere. Gwen is currently herself, under no influence from Morgana. Mordred is not evil, nor will he be turning evil at any point. Merlin has either not heard the prophecy about Mordred, has chosen to ignore it, or the prophecy doesn't exist in the first place. Honestly, half of the reason Mordred went evil was because Merlin wasn't nice to him, which was just a stupid move on Merlin's part. Like, he tried that already with Morgana, and it didn't work out. So, for whatever reason in my fic, Mordred became a knight at the beginning of season 5, but Merlin was like, "Yay, another magic user in Camelot that isn't trying to kill Arthur!" rather than, "Some prophecy told me he's evil, so I'm just going to alienate him until he leaves."

Also, I'm calling Merlin a warlock because he was born with magic while everyone else (a.k.a. Mordred) is going to be a sorcerer or mage.

I know that some of the details are vague in this chapter, but there's going to be a round table meeting in chapter 2 or 3 where they're literally going to explain every detail of the magic reveal to Arthur to the knights.

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Merlin absently munched on a handful of berries as his horse ambled along the road. Mordred rode next to him and was entertaining himself by causing the warlock's food to jump up and fly around at random intervals. Merlin couldn't bring himself to be annoyed, though. It was fantastic to be able to share magic with someone else, and the knights always looked at him oddly when he ate the berries he found. Just because they couldn't tell which ones weren't poisonous didn't mean that he couldn't. He was Gaius's apprentice after all.

"We'll be back to Camelot well before dark," Mordred commented once Merlin had succeeded in eating the rest of the berries- with the help of his own magic.

Merlin nodded. "I didn't fancy another night in the woods," he responded to the younger man. "Although, bandits do tend to attack me during the day, so I don't know that that makes us any safer."

Mordred rolled his eyes. "We both have magic and no one to hide it from at the moment. At this point, it would probably take a dragon to put us in any real danger. Although, the fact that you could just order it to go away negates even that, so I think we'll be fine."

Merlin laughed. He and Mordred- well, mostly just him because Arthur made him take Mordred along for protection that he really didn't need- were returning from a trip to rid a village of Wyvern. They two of them had basically just waited a few hours along the outskirts of the village for the creatures to attack, Merlin had ordered them to return to the Perilous Lands, no one had noticed, and the problem was solved. Well, the immediate problem was solved, at least, so Merlin and Mordred were returning to Camelot and Arthur.

The servant was about to speak again when the two mages heard hoof-beats coming up behind them. Before he even turned around, Merlin could tell that there were at least four horses quickly catching up to the travelers.

"Well, you were right about bandits attacking during the day," Mordred commented wryly while trying to catch a glimpse of their pursuers. "Should we run?" Their horses were still at a walk.

Merlin shook his head. "No point. If they're bandits, their horses are probably fresh. I'd rather be facing them when they get close enough to shoot at us."

"Bandits attack you far too often."

"Yes, they do," Merlin fervently agreed. He let his magic scan up the road in an attempt to see what they were about to face. When he managed to catch a glimpse, he rolled his eyes.

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Gwaine howled with laughter as he began to pull ahead of Elyan. "Oh no you don't," the queen's brother yelled as he spurred his horse on to greater speeds.

Risking a glance behind him, Gwaine saw that Elyan's horse was tiring. "First one to the top of that rise wins," he called back as he gestured to a small hill ahead.

Gwaine cheered for himself as he won their impromptu race. Elyan pulled his horse to a stop next to him seconds later. "Congratulations, Gwaine. You've won bragging rights."

"You bet I have, and I'm going to make sure that Mordred, Merlin, and the princess know all about it once we make it back to Camelot in a few hours."

Leon and Percival were galloping after them, though at a more sedate pace, so the two racers waited at the top of the hill for them to catch up. "We've been out here for weeks," Leon berated them. "If your horses go lame in the last few hours before we get home, I cannot be held responsible for the wrath of the stable master."

"Let's let the horses walk the rest of the way, shall we?" Gwaine suggested.

"You're the one who started this in the first place," Elyan reminded him.

Gwaine sighed. "I just want to get back to Camelot where I have an actual bed and actual food."

"Don't we all." The four knights had been on a two-month patrol of the kingdom's borders. Some of the other knights had been slightly jealous of the elite round table, so Arthur had decided to send them on patrol to show that he wasn't playing favorites. Gwaine knew it was necessary and a smart move, he just didn't like it.

"We have company," Percival interrupted them. He was looking at the part of the road that had been hidden by the hill. The other knights turned to see two mounted and cloaked figures a distance down the road. One had a green cloak on that Gwaine swore had come from the druids while the other was swallowed up by midnight blue fabric.

"Let's go introduce ourselves, shall we?" Gwaine asked. "Someone has to make the first move." He started forward without waiting for a response. Leon noted that he was rather more careful with his horse this time.

All of the knights kept a careful eye on their surroundings in case this was some kind of ambush. The two figures lowered their hoods as the knights drew closer, but they were still too far off for Gwaine to make out features. "Merlin?" Percival called out. "Mordred?"

Gwaine laughed as he realized that the strangers were indeed his friends. "What are the two of you doing way out here?" he asked them. The six of them wordlessly turned in the direction of Camelot and continued to talk as they rode.

"Mordred and I were taking care of something," Merlin told them with that honest vagueness Gwaine had come to expect from his friend. "Don't ask because I honestly can't tell you anything. Arthur will probably call a round table meeting tomorrow to explain everything."

"How's my sister?" Elyan asked.

"She misses you, but she's fine otherwise. We've only been away from Camelot for a day."

"Did she make you that fancy new cloak?" Gwaine asked.

Merlin nodded. "I think she was stress-sewing. A lot has happened in the past two months." Merlin paused. "I'm just going to stop talking now because I can't explain that either."

Gwaine pursed his lips, but decided that tricking information out of Merlin later would probably work better than badgering him about it now. He diverted his attention to Merlin's companion. Mordred, as a round table knight, had been assigned to the patrol with them. However, he had fallen ill just before they left, so he had had to stay behind with Arthur and Merlin. "Wherever did you get a druid cloak?"

Mordred, and the other knights, gave him an odd look. "It's _mine_?" Mordred answered.

"Am I missing something here?" Gwaine wasn't sure why everyone was acting like it was perfectly normal that a knight of Camelot was dressed like a druid.

"Merlin and I didn't want to draw a lot of attention with Camelot colors, so we chose to wear cloaks that we had," Mordred tried to explain.

"Yes, but why is it a _druid_ cloak?"

"Gwaine," Elyan asked slowly, "where do you think Mordred's from?"

Gwaine shrugged. "I haven't really thought about it. He saved us from Morgana, so Arthur knighted him. I guess I just assumed he had been travelling around before that. You never talk about a family or anything." Everyone was still staring incredulously, and Gwaine was beginning to feel uncomfortable.

"I'm a druid, Gwaine," Mordred finally said. The young knight pulled up his sleeve to reveal his tattoo. "Everyone else knew this, right?"

Everyone nodded.

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Merlin laughed at Gwaine's completely dumbfounded expression. No one had been trying to hide the fact from him. Mordred's heritage wasn't common knowledge, but it wasn't exactly a secret either.

Gwaine was still looking relatively confused by the time they made it back to Camelot. Merlin was glad to reach the cobble-stone courtyard after only a day of being away, so he could only imagine how ecstatic the knights were after two months.

A servant of about seventeen met them in front of the castle and grinned up at Merlin. "Did your secret mission go well?" he asked brightly as he took hold of Merlin and Mordred's horses.

"It's not a secret mission if you shout about it," Merlin teased as he dismounted. Gale was Arthur's new manservant. Though Merlin technically still held that position, he really hadn't acted as much of a servant for the past month and a half. Once Arthur had discovered his magic, Merlin had first been shunned then unofficially promoted to some kind of advisor. That was yet another thing that was going to have to be discussed at the next day's round table meeting.

Gale laughed. "The king wanted to see you as soon as you got back. I'll take care of your horses if you let him know his knights have also returned."

"Thanks, Gale." Merlin and Mordred pulled their bags from the horses while several stable hands came out to assist the other knights. "Mordred and I have to go talk to Arthur," he told them. "I'll tell him that you're all going to eat and go to bed."

"He'll probably expect you to be at training tomorrow morning," Mordred added. "So I'm assuming that you'll give your reports at the round table meeting afterwards."

The knights nodded wearily. They all seemed to have realized that they were finally home and had lost all energy. Gwaine hadn't even bothered to ask who on Earth Gale was. Merlin and Mordred hurried up the front steps of the castle before disappearing inside.

* * *

So, next chapter will be much more exciting. Merlin's going to reveal a newfound talent, and the knights are probably going to be told about magic.

Criticism is wanted. I really want to improve my writing, so any kind of comment helps.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I still don't own Merlin.

So, this was just a fun chapter that I wanted to write. The round table meeting is next chapter, and everything will be explained about the reveal. I'm not going to put a flashback in here, but I might write a prequel about the reveal if I still have inspiration when I'm done with this story. I promise that every necessary detail, plus more, will be in the next chapter, though.

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Leon was surprised when he woke up very comfortably the next morning. It took him a moment to realize that he was in Camelot rather than out in the forest. He was tempted to stay in bed for a few minutes longer, but he quickly stood up before he could fall back asleep. The King would be holding their daily training in about an hour, and Leon didn't want to be late on his first day back. Before the two-month patrol, Arthur had been personally training him and the rest of the round table knights nearly every morning. The senior knight was looking forward to getting back into that routine. He was actually most curious about what Mordred had been doing while they were gone. Arthur had probably temporarily assigned him to another group of knights to train with. Leon paused and made an effort to organize his thoughts more effectively.

As he pulled on clothing and armor, Leon allowed his mind to drift back over the events of the previous day. He quickly came to the realization that no one had been surprised enough to see Merlin and Mordred out on their own. He and the other knights had simply been too exhausted to realize that anything was strange. It was a dangerous state of mind for a knight to be in and also the reason that patrols never lasted longer than two months.

He grabbed breakfast on his way down to the training field and began to try to piece together what Merlin and Mordred had been doing so far from Camelot. The two were friends- not quite as close as Merlin and Arthur, though no one was as close as Merlin and Arthur- so it made sense that they would travel together. What Leon couldn't figure out though, was why no other knights had been sent out with them. The way those two had been acting, it had almost seemed as if Merlin were in charge, and Mordred was just along for the ride. Which also made no sense. As much as Arthur trusted Merlin, the servant wouldn't have been sent out to do something on his own. He must have been missing something.

The knight's musings were interrupted by the arrival of Gwaine, Percival, and Elyan on the steps of the Castle. Leon was pleased to see that they all looked well-rested.

"We've decided that Merlin's keeping secrets from us," Gwaine announced as the quartet headed out to the training field.

Leon nodded in agreement. "I've been thinking much the same thing. He implied that Arthur was aware of what was going on, though, so I suppose we'll be told about it today." He turned to look behind him as a servant dropped several weapons on the path.

Percival immediately went to help the unfortunate boy carry some of it. "I really appreciate the help," the blond servant thanked him. "Merlin said you'd be nice."

"You're the one who was talking to Merlin yesterday," Gwaine observed. "I'm Gwaine. Who's you master? I don't know that I've seen you around before."

"Gale," the boy responded as Leon watched, surprised to see him so comfortable among the knights. Perhaps he had befriended Mordred as well. The young knight's shyness actually tended to attract people to him. "I'm actually the king's servant."

"Merlin is the king's servant," Leon said, confused.

Gale bit his lip. "I probably shouldn't tell you anything, but I'll tell you what's common knowledge around the Castle at least." He paused to readjust a few of the weapons in his arms. "King Arthur and Merlin, about a week after you'd left, went out on a hunting trip. They were gone for less than a week, but everyone could tell that something was wrong when they got back. The next day, a rumor started that Sir Mordred had made a bet with the king. Apparently, he believed that he could train Merlin to fight decently with a sword, so the king released Merlin from his duties. Merlin came down to the kitchens where I was working that same day and told me that I was now the king's manservant."

"Merlin and Arthur aren't still at odds, though, are they?" Leon asked, absorbing the new information.

"As far as most people in the castle believe, they never were."

"You know differently."

"I apologize, Sire Leon, but I've said all that I'm going to say on the matter."

Leon nodded in acceptance. He could see that Merlin had chosen his replacement well. That fact alone spoke volumes about just how serious Arthur and Merlin's falling out had been. Most of the time, Merlin made sure that the king received a servant that would drive him crazy because Merlin had every intention of coming back. Leon could tell that Gale had been chosen because Arthur would genuinely like him.

Gwaine looked as if he was about to try to pry more information from the servant, but something ahead of them caught his attention. Leon looked to see what it was. They had almost reached the training field at that point, and Leon could see two figures sparring with swords on the far side while another watched. The king was obviously the spectator, and one of the combatants appeared to be Mordred, but the third was a mystery.

The stranger was slight but tall and wore some type of lightweight leather armor. While he wasn't up to the standards of the other knights by any means, his skills were actually on par with many of the squires in Camelot.

"Is that Merlin?" Percival asked disbelievingly. Leon's jaw dropped when he realized that the figure was indeed the raven-haired servant.

"Sir Mordred took the bet very seriously," Gale explained.

Leon just nodded in wordless agreement. He had known that Merlin wasn't the useless idiot most people thought him to be, but this was beyond anything that he thought possible.

"Merlin," Gwaine called out once they reached the king's position. "You've been holding out on us."

"Not about my sword fighting ability," Merlin argued back as he and Mordred walked over to join the group. "This is a new development."

"We heard about the bet. I take it you're rooting for Mordred."

"I'm actually part of the bet. Mordred and I each get two days off if we win."

"I never actually agreed to that," Arthur debated.

"So the three of you made a bet, but never actually agreed on the winnings?" Elyan asked slowly. Leon silently agreed that nothing was making sense anymore.

"That would be a topic for the round table meeting after lunch," Arthur told them. "Let's get training out of the way because this meeting could take a while."

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Merlin laughed at all of the incredulous looks the knights had been giving him for the past hour of training. Each of them had taken a turn fighting him, and, while they were all far more skilled, he had been able to hold his own for a short time. Percival had taken his new skills in stride, and Gwaine seemed more entertained than anything, but Leon and Elyan seemed completely shocked.

Mordred had also been receiving praise from the returned knights as he had been the one to teach Merlin in the first place. Though he was a newer addition to the round table, his skills were nearly on a level with everyone else's.

Sword skills and magic actually went remarkably well together. Mordred, and more recently Merlin, had been finding that the sixth sense that alerted them to danger also helped them to anticipate an opponent's moves. That extra awareness of the world was a large help, but Merlin simply hadn't known how to apply it to sword work until Mordred had explained it.

It resulted in a radically different fighting style that only others with magic would be able to copy, so Mordred had taken pains to make sure that he fought in similar fashion to the rest of the knights. His magic senses still aided him, but not to the extent that they could have. Since Arthur already knew about Merlin's magic, and the round table knights would soon be told, Mordred had decided to simply teach Merlin the most effective fighting style for a mage even though it would be noticeable. The odds were that no one remembered how some people fought before the Purge anyway.

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"If you've been able to do this in only six weeks," Leon said to Mordred, "then you're going to make a fantastic instructor in the future."

Mordred shrugged. "I don't know that I'm all that great of a teacher," he told the knight. "I just happen to understand how Merlin thinks and reacts. If you look for it, you'll see that even now he's moving differently than the other knights."

Leon turned to where Merlin was currently facing off against Percival. They were quite literally David and Goliath. Although Merlin was fairly tall, Percival had muscle in addition to a height advantage. Percival was using his usual technique, designed to use his strength to its best advantage. Merlin, though, was fighting very strangely. Most swordsmen would parry an oncoming sword with enough power to knock it some distance out of range, and they wouldn't take any chances when ducking or dodging their opponent's sword. Merlin, on the other hand, seemed very sure of exactly where the stronger man's sword was at all times. He only deflected it enough so that it wouldn't hit him, and sever times he dodged only enough so that the sword ghosted across his leather armor.

Percival, despite being thrown off by the new style, did ultimately beat Merlin. The servant might actually have stood a chance against a common bandit, though. That triggered something in Leon's memory, and the senior knight took a moment to figure out what it was. "He fights like you!" Leon finally exclaimed to Mordred a full minute later.

"I'm not sure what you mean," the younger knight responded. "I fight very similarly to the rest of you."

Leon nodded in agreement. "Most of the time, you do. I've seen you change styles a few times while we were fighting dangerous enemies, though. You slip into that style that you've taught Merlin and become far more effective." He hadn't been sure that it was happening, or that Mordred was even consciously changing styles until he had seen Merlin fighting. Leon had less than no idea what to do with the information, though.

"Your questions will all be answered in a few hours. I honestly can't tell you anything right now."

"Mordred, how does a unique fighting style have anything to do with your secret mission yesterday or the king's new servant?" Those three topics were the ones which Leon had been specifically told not to ask about, but he couldn't find any sort of connection between them that made sense.

Mordred grinned. "Our fighting style actually isn't that unique. However, most people cannot or will not use it anymore."

"I'm just going to stop asking questions now. The king seems to know what's going on, so that shall satisfy me until this afternoon."

A clatter resounded across the field, and Leon turned to see what had caused it. Merlin was on his back with his shield on top of him, and his sword way laying several feet away. Gwaine had been trying to show his friend some kind of new move, but was now doubled over laughing at the servant's- was servant the right word anymore?- predicament.

"You tripped me!" Merlin complained.

"You need to pay more attention to your surroundings," Gwaine laughed back.

"You told me to pay attention to you!"

"Yes, but skill is being able to split your concentration." Gwaine pulled Merlin to his feet.

"You try cramming ten million moves into your head within six weeks, then talk to me about concentration."

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Please review. I really want to improve my writing skill.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin.

So, the round table meeting is finally happening, and the backstory on the reveal is here! The conversation around the round table is supposed to be chaotic. Half of its members are shocked, and they're basically just saying whatever comes to mind. Let me know if it's too confusing. The round table meeting will continue in the next chapter. This one was getting long, and I'm going to try to make the rest of the meeting more of a strategy meeting, and Merlin's probably going to tell the knights his backstory in a more orderly fashion.

Also, I realize that I update extremely inconsistently. Some days you're going to get two chapters, and sometimes several days will separate posts.

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"Give us something, Mordred," Gwaine begged. The five Knights of the Round Table were gathered around a table eating lunch, and the room was empty of other knights for the time being. Merlin and Gale had disappeared with Arthur once training was over, and the knights were left with instructions to gather at the round table an hour later.

Mordred shook his head. "Sorry, Gwaine. You've had a decade to figure out what's going on. Another hour won't kill you." Leon raised an eyebrow. So the secrets definitely were centered on Merlin.

"It might," Gwaine argued dramatically. "I know that look, Leon. You've figured something out."

Leon shrugged. "I haven't figured anything out. Did you know that Merlin's been in Camelot for a decade?"

"You know," Gwaine said. "I hadn't really thought about it before."

"I was under the impression that Merlin had been here for much longer," Elyan commented. "He's such a fixture in Camelot."

Leon laughed. "That he is," the senior knight confirmed. "I suppose we've never really discussed how Merlin came to Camelot, but it was nearly a decade ago now. He and Arthur _hated_ each other at first."

"Why haven't we heard this before?" Elyan asked at the same time that Gwaine said, "I don't believe you."

"That's why," Leon answered, gesturing at Gwaine. "Everyone knows how close the two are, so they don't believe that they've ever been anything else."

"All right," Gwaine said with a glare at Mordred. "Since our druid friend here won't tell us anything else, let's figure out what's going on. Merlin's been hiding something since he came to Camelot."

"Right," Elyan agreed. His face lit up. "That's why Merlin and Arthur had a falling out! Merlin was hiding something from the king. Mordred?"

"Nope," the druid knight said. "I'm not telling you a single thing."

"It would've had to be something extreme," Leon continued the train of thought. "They argue all the time, but it never lasts." He tried to search back in his memory to see what Merlin might have been hiding.

"Leon, you've known him longest. Did anything strange happen around him before we came to Camelot?" Gwaine asked.

Leon shrugged. "Quite a bit, actually. You've heard it all though. Some crazy witch named Nimueh tried to take down Camelot before mysteriously disappearing, I think there was a sickness at some point, the Great Dragon attacked, a witchfinder showed up at some point. That barely even scratches the surface. What's your theory?"

"I'm wondering if Merlin somehow entangled himself with a sorcerer or something," Gwaine admitted. "He always manages to get out of tough situations, and I swear he always knows more than he lets on. Maybe Arthur caught a sorcerer while they were out hunting, and Merlin helped him to escape. That would be enough to drive Arthur insane." Leon noted that Mordred was looking extremely amused at Gwaine's speculation. As was Percival.

"Merlin is the single most loyal person I've ever met, though," Elyan argued. "He wouldn't go against the law."

"Yes he would," Leon disagreed. "Arthur just lets him get away with it because he usually does it with good reason. What is so entertaining, Percival?" The muscular knight was trying valiantly to keep from laughing.

"You know what's going on, don't you?" Mordred asked quietly.

Percival nodded. "I've been pretty sure about him for two years, and it didn't take me very long to figure out why you two get along so well."

"And you're okay with this?"

Percival shrugged. "I grew up outside of Camelot, and I actually spent some time with the druids before running into Lancelot." Leon had absolutely no idea what was going on, nor did Gwaine and Elyan judging by their expressions.

"Does the name Emrys mean anything to you?" Mordred asked.

Percival's eyes widened. "Is he really? I had wondered. Then that makes Arthur-"

Mordred nodded. "You can see why Arthur was angry."

"I'm amazed Merlin's still alive, actually."

"Why wouldn't he be?" Gwaine asked in complete confusion.

Percival shrugged. "I suppose you'll have to wait another ten minutes to find out."

The knights quickly finished their lunch and headed towards the heart of the castle. They entered the chamber which housed the round table to find Gwen already present in her usual seat to the left of Arthur's.

"I'm sorry I didn't come see you yesterday, Gwen," Elyan apologized when his sister jumped up to give him a hug. "I barely ate dinner before I fell asleep. How have you been?"

"I'm wonderful now that you're back," Gwen grinned at him. The knights took their seats as the siblings caught up. "It's been a rather interesting two months around here."

Leon tore his gaze away from the Queen when the door swung open to reveal to figures. Arthur and Merlin were laughing and shoving each other as usual as they made their way into the room, so Leon didn't notice anything odd at first. It was only when they stopped that he figured out what was odd. Merlin was walking with confidence. The servant- Leon was really going to have to come up with a new descriptive term- was usually slightly hunched over and clumsily dashed around. The raven-haired man before him, though, almost seemed to be someone else entirely. Perhaps it was his newfound fighting ability.

Arthur took his usual seat next to his wife, and Merlin sat to the king's right. That seat had always been left vacant. According to the tradition of the kings of old, it was reserved for a magical advisor, so no one had been willing to fill it in Camelot. He supposed that Merlin wasn't aware of this, and Arthur didn't seem to care, so Leon chose not to say anything.

"Some people," Arthur said, glaring at Merlin, "are very obvious about secrets being kept. So I know that you're all eager to find out what's going on."

"A decade," Merlin said pointedly to the king.

Arthur ignored him in favor of continuing his speech. "If you wouldn't mind being patient just a little bit longer. I'd like to hear about your patrol before we broach any other subjects."

"We followed the planned route, Sire," Leon reported as he was the most senior knight. "We ran into very little trouble for the first five weeks. There were the usual bandits, and we actually fought a pack of wolves away from one village, but nothing out of the ordinary occurred. Then we reached the Eastern border."

Arthur and Merlin shared a glance at this that Leon didn't miss. "Apparently bandit activity has really pick up out there," Leon continued. "Several of the villages reported an unusual number of strangers around as well as an increase in highway robbery. Many are afraid to travel. We remained in the area for two weeks, but it seemed as if our presence had scared off any trouble, so we spent the last week or so finishing our patrol and returning home. I'm sure Merlin told you that we ran into Mordred and him just hours from the city."

Arthur nodded at the news. "Good work. I think you were right, Merlin. This has to be Morgana." The king must have noticed the expressions of confusion on most of the faces around the table because he gave an explanation. "Merlin and Mordred, for reasons I'm getting to in a minute, were also out East, and they're convinced that Morgana's stirring up trouble on the edges of the kingdom."

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"How do we know it's Morgana, though?" Gwaine asked. "I mean, she could be behind the bandits, but so could a lot of other people. Your sister isn't the only crazy person out there."

"Mordred and I were investigating reports of a pack of Wyvern attacking villages on the eastern border," Merlin said. "I'm almost sure that it was Morgana's magic which enchanted them to venture so far from the Perilous Lands."

Gwaine studied his friend thoughtfully. He didn't have a clue as to why Arthur would've been okay with Merlin and Mordred facing off against a pack of Wyvern alone. "I'm lost," he admitted.

"So am I," Percival admitted.

Mordred laughed. "Did you know that Wyvern are related to dragons, Percival," the young knight asked. "Percival figured it out," Mordred explained to Merlin's questioning look.

Percival glanced between Merlin and Mordred several times before a look of comprehension crossed him face. "I can't believe I didn't figure that part out."

"What's going on?" Gwaine asked again. He kept thinking that things were going to start making sense before realizing that no, they really weren't.

"Merlin here," Arthur said as he clapped Merlin on the shoulder, "is an idiot."

"But I'm an idiot that managed not to get caught for a decade, part of which was while Uther was still king," Merlin argued cheerfully.

"I still don't know how you're alive today."

"Neither does Gaius."

"I'm starting to think my theory has some credibility," Gwaine said. There was nothing that Uther liked more than to root out magic.

"Gwaine, your theory is so close, but so, so far," Percival told him.

"What does Gwaine think?" Merlin asked.

"That you're conspiring with sorcerers."

"Well, he's not wrong."

"I suppose a demonstration would be the best thing right now," Arthur commanded, giving Merlin a gesture that clearly said 'go for it.'

Gwaine looked on in anticipation as Merlin's gaze flew across the room to land on the fireplace set into one of the chamber's walls where a large fire had been kindled. He honestly wasn't paying attention to anyone else, so he very clearly saw Merlin's eyes flash gold. Before he could even order his thoughts, a tongue of flame leaped from the hearth and flew through the air to hover over the round table. It took the form of a dragon once it did so.

Everyone could only stare as the little creature glided around the table, sparks trailing in its wake. Once it had made a few circuits, the fiery being settled around Merlin's shoulders before fading away at the same time the mage's eyes dimmed back to their usual blue.

There was a loud thud as both Leon and Elyan leaped back from the tables, overturning their chairs in the process. Both Mordred and Percival seemed about ready to leap up as well, but to defend Merlin rather than themselves. Gwen's previous delighted expression had melted into a glare at her brother's reaction, and Arthur was giving the knights a look that clearly said 'sit down and behave or else.'

Gwaine, for his part, fought down his shock and decided to try to diffuse the tension in the room before swords were actually drawn. "I think I agree with the princess, Merlin. You really are an idiot. Who decides to study magic while living in Camelot?" Everyone chose to ignore Gwaine, though Merlin did flash him a grateful smile.

"Leon, Elyan, sit down," Arthur commanded. "Merlin is under my protection."

"And mine," the queen added while shooting her brother another glare.

"Not that he actually needs it," Percival commented under his breath.

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Leon automatically responded to the order from his king and righted his chair before sitting back down. Elyan followed suit. Leon's head was spinning, though. His entire training as a knight had been based on one thing. If magic is used, attack and kill. Up until the last few minutes, he had fully believed that Arthur was in the same frame of mind.

"What do you mean, Percival?" Gwaine asked. "Of course we're going to protect our friend."

Mordred laughed. "Merlin could take all of you with very little effort on his part," he explained. "Actually, he could probably level Camelot given enough time."

"So it should say a lot that he hasn't done so in the last decade," Gwen added. "Actually, he could have destroyed Camelot without any effort at all. He simply would've had to step back and do nothing any number of times."

"Pause for a moment," Merlin interrupted. "Angry at me or not, who feels safe right now?" Leon glanced incredulously around the table as everyone but himself and Elyan raised a hand. "How much do you know, Percival?"

"I think I have a vague understanding of everything," Percival said. "I knew you had magic, and Mordred just confirmed my suspicions about Emrys and told me about something to do with dragons."

Leon was becoming more alarmed by the moment.

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Merlin watched as Leon and Elyan were growing even more terrified. The latter, though, may have just been afraid of his sister's glare. "Yeah, that's about it," Merlin told Percival.

"I think you're developing the Second Sight as well," Mordred put in.

Merlin rolled his eyes with an inner sigh. He had known that some of his abilities weren't quite normal. Mordred hadn't been able to send his sight up the road the previous day. "Because I wasn't enough of a freak already."

"Having magic doesn't exactly make you a freak, Merlin," Gwaine argued. "I'm still mad about not being told about this sooner, but that doesn't mean I'm going to let you call yourself names."

Merlin groaned. "Gwaine," he told his friend. "Even among magic users I'm a freak. I was born with magic which makes me a warlock, for one thing."

"Is that rare?" Percival asked.

"It's unheard of," Mordred answered. "Some people have more of an aptitude for magic than others, and some people like Morgana can accidentally trigger latent talents, but magic is a choice for the most part."

"How do you know some much about it?" Gwaine asked.

Leon sighed. "We've been over this, Gwaine. Mordred's a druid. We're sorry no one told you," the senior knight said.

"And why do druids know so much about magic?" Gwaine asked pointedly, looking from Leon to Mordred.

"Because he has magic too," Elyan realized.

"Sit down!" Arthur commanded before the duo could jump up again.

"That's why Mordred was the only one to come with me yesterday," Merlin explained. He rushed to distract Leon and Elyan before they could get too angry. "I had to order the Wyvern away, and Arthur insisted that I not go alone."

"As easy as that?" Gwaine asked. "You just asked the scaly beasts to leave?"

Merlin nodded. "I'm a dragonlord, so they have to do whatever I tell them." Leon just looked at Arthur helplessly, but Merlin read his expression for what it was. "I did everything I could to send the dragon away, Leon." He decided to leave out the part about freeing it for the time being. As guilty as he felt about that, it wouldn't help his case. "The power of a dragonlord is passed down from father to son upon death."

He saw Leon's eyes widen as the knight realized exactly what he was implying. "So you did know who you father was."

"Gaius only told me right before we left to find him."

"Did you know about any of this, Arthur?" Leon asked. It was obvious to Merlin that he was still in shock.

The king shook his head. "Merlin and I went hunting about a week after the four of you left on patrol. Most of the week was completely fine, but we were attacked by a roc on the fifth morning."

"A rock attacked you?" Gwaine asked disbelievingly.

Merlin sighed. Could no one understand the concept? "A roc is a type of giant bird, Gwaine," he explained.

"Anyway, I was sure that we were done for," Arthur continued. "My sword wasn't doing anything, and there was no cover nearby."

"I had to do something," Merlin continued. "His royal highness over here had insisted we travel to the most remote part of the kingdom to get the best game." He made sure the sarcasm was evident in his tone. "I may have thrown a fireball at it, and Arthur may have noticed," he concluded.

"I didn't know how to react, so I dragged Merlin back to Camelot only to have Gwen yell at me for being mean to him." Arthur sounded hurt.

"You hit me!" Merlin argued. "You deserved it. I had a black eye for weeks!"

"Then, of course, when I finally tell Gwen why I'm mad at Merlin, she yells at me some more," Arthur complained.

"And you deserved every word at the time," Gwen agreed with a grin. Merlin could see why Elyan was afraid of her. A unique kind of terror was hidden behind her loving personality.

"Where does Mordred factor into this?" Gwaine asked.

"He figured out what had happened pretty quickly," Arthur answered. "A few hours after we'd gotten back, he showed up at my door to tell me that we had made a bet and that I'd assigned Merlin to him for an unspecified amount of time. Then he left before I could say a word."

"How very Merlinesque of you, Mordred," Gwaine complimented.

"I was just trying to keep them from killing each other," Mordred told him. "It was pretty terrifying."

"About a month later, Mordred and I finally got the two to talk," Gwen continued. "We locked them in the vaults for a few hours, and the last two weeks have been great."

"I have about ten million questions," Gwaine complained, "and I don't even know what to ask next."

"Merlin," Percival suggested. "You can tell us all about yourself later, and hopefully get Leon and Elyan to trust you, but we might want to move on to Morgana. You're certain that she was behind the Wyvern attack?"

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Ooooh, we're getting into the actual plot now. This chapter was getting crazy, so I'm ending it here, and the next one will pick up pretty much from this exact point.

Please review!


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin. This work is fan fiction.

I'm thrilled by all the follows and favs I'm getting. Thank you so much for the support!

Here's the rest of the round table meeting. I know Leon and Elyan are being cold, but Leon really hasn't known anything but Camelot, and Elyan's father was killed because of magic.

I'm not going to write romance beyond K+, but I do kinda want to bring in a love interest for Merlin. Freya was great, and I wish it had worked out, but she and Merlin knew each other for less than a week. It was very "Romeo and Juliet." I'm actually toying around with bringing Mithian into the picture. I don't know. What do you guys want?

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 _"You're certain that Morgana was behind the Wyvern attack?" Percival asked Merlin._

The warlock in question nodded. "I managed to send the Wyvern back to the Perilous Lands, but they tried to resist at first. I can't explain it," Merlin admitted- although, he really couldn't explain half of what happened around him, "but it felt as if they were driven to attack Camelot. When I finally broke through, it was like a rush of power was released."

"How do you know it was Morgana?" Gwen asked curiously. Merlin and Mordred had only spoken to Arthur the previous night. The queen was hearing this for the first time.

Merlin shrugged. "I'm not completely sure." Oh, how he longed for the day when he actually could be sure about something. "It felt like her magic, though, fueled by hatred and rage. Morgana doesn't have a use for any other emotion most of the time. Believe it or not, that's quite unique. Even Nimueh's magic was fueled by a sense of righteousness in addition to her anger." Hopefully that made sense, Merlin thought to himself.

"I've sent several patrols to that part of the kingdom to have a look around," Arthur added. "They left at first light, and I'm hoping to hear from them within the week. If Morgana's up to something, we'll know about it."

Everyone nodded, even Leon and Elyan. If there was even a slight chance that Morgana had plans, and investigation had to be made. Even Merlin wouldn't be able to do anything until they found her or her forces.

"Nimueh?" Leon asked a moment later. It appeared that he was curious in spite of himself.

Merlin nodded. "She started causing trouble shortly after I came to Camelot, and she's been dead for about nine years now."

"I knew she had disappeared, but not that she had died."

"That would be because I was forced to kill her and couldn't tell anyone about it," Merlin responded. He grimaced. Hopefully that wouldn't scare Leon more.

Most of the knights, including Mordred- apparently Merlin had forgotten to tell him about Nimueh- looked shocked at this. "Hold on," Gwaine said. "Nimueh was this all-powerful, master of life and death, incredibly scary high priestess, right?" Merlin and Mordred both nodded. "Good job, Merlin!"

The warlock saw Arthur roll his eyes next to him. "That's not even the most impressive thing he's done, though," the king commented. "Why don't you tell everyone what you've been doing in Camelot for the last decade?"

Merlin sighed. "For the most part, I've just been giving you an edge over bandits and stopping the people that try to kill the king with magic during tournaments. You actually helped with that one time, Gwaine."

"And then I was banished," the knight agreed.

"I'm pretty sure you did that after you were banished."

"You might be right."

"Gwaine!" Elyan complained. "Can't you follow any rules?"

"No, none."

Merlin laughed. "I'm pretty sure I used magic a few times when I helped to rescue you, too, Elyan. Then, of course, there were several beasts that had to be defeated. There was an afanc, a questing beast, more Wyvern, a unicorn- though Arthur took care of that one…" he trailed off as he searched back in his memory.

"Wasn't there some kind of black creature that was terrorizing the city at one point?" Leon asked. "Did you lend a hand in us defeating that?"

"No, and that topic is off-limits," Merlin told him. He had had time to mourn Freya's death, and he hadn't really ever blamed Arthur for it, but that was not something he ever, under any circumstances, wanted to discuss. He noted the king shrugging at Leon's curious glance. Arthur had gotten the same response two weeks ago.

"Merlin also is surprisingly great at discovering traitors," Arthur said to break the silence. "Looking back, I realize that I should have figured this out."

Merlin nodded. "I did try to tell you about both of them several times, but 'No, Merlin, you're being paranoid!'" he mocked the king.

"Who?" Percival asked. "You didn't seem very surprised about Morgana's betrayal when I first met you."

"Probably because he had known that she was planning something for the better part of a year," Arthur explained.

"That's why she hates me so much," Merlin added. "I was always interfering with her plans."

"Personally, I think it's because you poisoned her."

"I had to!"

"Does Morgana know you have magic?" Leon asked.

Merlin shook his head. "I was too afraid to tell her at first, then I didn't want her to use it against me."

"So she thinks that an ordinary servant has been foiling her plans?" Leon asked.

Arthur shook his head. "Merlin and Morgana were sort of friends before she realized she had magic. She knows how smart he is, though it seemed like she always found him more endearing than cunning," the king explained.

"Like brother, like sister," Merlin muttered, earning an elbow from Arthur. "I also knew about Agravaine because I saw him meeting with Morgana. What else have I done?"

"Love spells," Gwen pointed out.

Merlin nodded. "I've saved Arthur from several unfortunate matches, from a pair of Sidhe, from a goblin- though I released the goblin, so that was my mess to clean up anyway- and from a love spell. There's way too much to discuss right now, but that's the gist of it." He thought for a moment longer.

"I'm also 90% sure that Morgana was behind Gwen's banishment," the warlock said more quietly. Everyone paid more attention at that. "Lancelot hadn't actually come back from the dead. Morgana had turned his body into a shade of his former self, and he had no control over his actions. Something just felt wrong around Gwen for a while, too. I didn't have- and still don't have- any proof that Gwen's actions were anything but her own, and at the time I couldn't exactly explain about Lancelot either."

"We're just happy that everything ended well," Arthur concluded. The king looked at everyone around the table. "Now, I'm not asking any of you to completely reverse your views on magic this second. For now I'm simply asking you to consider the idea that magic might be a tool rather than a corrupting force."

"Sire, forgive me, but are you willing to go against everything your father stood for?" Leon asked.

Arthur nodded. "I've made my peace with it. My father was a great king, but he was misguided and harsh when he had no need to be. I will form my own opinions." Merlin grinned at that.

"Leon?" Merlin asked. "There was a time when magic saved your life."

"Was that the same time it was used to raise an immortal army to take over Camelot?" the senior knight responded before sighing. "I'm sorry, Merlin. I can't believe that you're evil, but I also can't believe that everything I've been taught about magic is wrong."

"For now, Merlin and I will be grateful if you simply keep our secret and not attempt to kill us," Mordred suggested.

"I can agree to that."

"As can I," Elyan concurred.

"I never really understood all the fuss about magic," Gwaine put in. "Neither of you have anything to fear from me."

"I'll continue to keep your secret," Percival said firmly.

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"Now," said Merlin as Leon watched everyone but himself and Elyan take magic in stride, "I think we need to discuss Morgana."

"We'll be ready once we figure out what she's up to," Gwaine said fiercely.

Merlin flashed what Leon recognized to me his mischievous smile at Gwaine. "That's what I intend to make sure of. Mordred and I had been working off of the assumption that we would have to keep our magic hidden the next time she attacked, and we've been scrambling to figure out how to protect Camelot."

"However," Mordred continued, "Morgana would never believe that Arthur would willingly work with a sorcerer." Percival shot the young knight a questioning glance. "She knows that I have magic, she just doesn't know that Merlin does as well. Morgana will be working under the impression that the king, knights, and Merlin are going to be trying to thwart her through non-magical means. She'll keep an eye out for my interference of course, but I'm not sure if she even thinks I'll use magic in the name of Camelot."

"So basically," Gwaine said happily, "Morgana's going to be looking for a long mage, but she's going to get two magic users working with several other people."

"That's only going to work if said group of people learns to fight with and against magic, though," Merlin suggested.

Gwaine's face lit up. "Are you going to throw the princess around?" he asked.

Merlin nodded at his friend. "And you too." The smile dropped off of Gwaine's face, and the knight groaned.

"Training tomorrow is going to take place outside of the city," Arthur told them. "Magic will be used. Leon, Elyan, if you don't want to come, I'll understand. Join another group of knights and tell them that you're to train with them for the morning to make sure that you haven't lost any skill while on patrol. I would invite you to at least come and watch, though."

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Merlin pulled Arthur aside once the meeting was over. "We should bring Gale tomorrow," the warlock told him.

Arthur frowned. "Why would I do that?" he asked. Sometimes Merlin just made no sense. Even knowing that his friend had magic didn't help in that regard.

"Arthur, I was very careful when choosing your new manservant. He's incredibly loyal, and he won't sell anyone out."

Arthur raised an eyebrow at his friend's earnest expression. "That doesn't mean we should tell him everything, though."

"He's alright with magic," Merlin added. "That was another criterion for your new manservant."

"Why? So he could continue trying to chance my beliefs when I banished you?"

"What if I said yes?" Merlin grinned. "Of course not. You were changing your beliefs all on your own. Gale simply wouldn't stand in the way."

"Fine. Why tell him, though?"

"People tend to overlook servants, for one thing. Morgana, along with many others, know that I'm more than I seem. Gale is simply another face to them."

"You think he could be an asset." Arthur looked appraisingly at the warlock before him. He was still getting used to the idea that Merlin was more than a loyal idiot. Merlin was actually one of the smartest individuals that the king knew.

"He _will_ be an asset."

"I trust you."

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Percival caught up to Merlin as everyone went their separate ways. Do you and Arthur have a place in mind for training?" the knight asked. He was incredibly curious to see what the next day would bring.

Merlin nodded. "There's a forest just north of the city with a large clearing no more than a half hour's ride away. As far as we know, no one knows it exists, so it should be secluded enough."

Percival nodded in agreement. "Where are we heading?" He had just been following Merlin, so he wasn't sure where they had ended up.

"We're looking for Gale. He's probably down in the kitchens at the moment. Gale!" Merlin called down the hallway at a retreating figure.

"Merlin!" Gale answered as he turned to walk toward them. "Is everything okay?" Merlin nodded. "Sir Percival, right?" Gale asked.

Percival smiled at the young servant and nodded. "Nice to meet you, Gale."

"Gale," Merlin said. "I need to gather some herbs for Gaius before the day's over, but the knights are training tomorrow morning some distance from the city, and you're coming. Come find me, or just stay with Arthur tomorrow, and we'll show you where to go."

"Are you finally going to tell me what's going on?" the servant asked.

Merlin nodded. "Tomorrow you get to see for yourself."

Percival noted that it was late in the afternoon, which explained why Merlin practically dashed off in the next second. "Merlin, wait," he called after the retreating figure. "I'll come help you if you let me ask questions."

"Percival, you're a life saver," Merlin thanked him. "I have to stock up on so many herbs for Gaius. I have a feeling that I won't have very much more time to do so in the near future."

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I love Percival, and he's always seemed like the type of person who will watch and wait before acting. He showed up with Lancelot to help Arthur and pledged his loyalty once he saw that Arthur was worth following. Lots of fanfics have speculated about Percival's past, and I'd like to agree with the ones that suggest he has a history with magic.

Please review. Let me know how I can improve.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin.

So, the first part of this chapter is purely bromance between Merlin and Percival. I realize that it's really sappy, but I see Percival as a big teddy bear that will kill you if you hurt his friends.

I've decided no to include Mithian, and I think Morgana's beyond saving at this point (she's been consumed by hatred and evil for like seven years or something), so I'm going to give Merlin an orignal character girlfriend who I can work into the plot. That won't happen this chapter, but maybe in chapter 6 or 7. Not sure yet.

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An hour later found Merlin and Percival searching a clearing in the forest for several different plants. Merlin looked up happily to see that the knight had actually been able to gather a decent amount of lavender. This wasn't the first time Percival had volunteered to help, and the knight was actually getting quite good at identifying at least a few of the plants and herbs that Gaius needed.

"I didn't know that you had spent time with the druids," Merlin said in genuine curiosity. It would have been nice to know that another knight was on his side.

"I wasn't entirely sure how that would be received in Camelot," Percival answered, taking a break from searching the glade. "We were already under enough scrutiny from being common-born knights. By the time I realized that no one was going to care, I decided to continue keeping that secret."

Merlin nodded in understanding. Percival was one of the few people that always made sense to him. The knight might not be the most talkative around everyone else, but he was always willing to speak to Merlin. "How did you figure out that I'm Emrys?"

Percival shrugged. "What other mage has a close relationship to his king? Honestly, I was never completely certain, but the two of you fit the prophecy so well."

Merlin grinned. "I suppose we do. My loyalties have always been with Arthur."

"And his with you, Merlin, especially now that he knows what you are."

"The prat used to think I was useless."

Percival shook his head. "He tried to convince himself of that, but he had as much faith in you as you had in him. It's just a lot more obvious now."

Merlin grinned. It was true. Arthur had given up on denying that Merlin was his equal.

"Are you really as powerful as the legends say?" Percival asked a moment later.

"Gaius thinks so, and Mordred is beyond convinced."

"Oh, I meant to ask earlier, but how did Mordred figure out who you were?"

"I first met him about nine years ago, and he could just tell. I think that was actually the first time anyone called me Emrys. The druids somehow just know who I am, and it's very strange."

"How can they tell?" The two had moved to sit in the grass at some point during the conversation.

Merlin threw his hands in the air. "I really need to ask that question one of these days. I think it has something to do with how magic moves around me. It would explain why Morgana doesn't have a clue- she's largely untrained in the finer points of magic."

"What do you mean, how magic moves?"

Merlin could see that Percival was trying to understand the concept. He pursed his lips and thought about how best to explain. "Apparently I see the world differently than most people. I've never really discussed it with Mordred, but I think he's the same way." The warlock held up a blade of grass. "What do you see?"

"A piece of grass?" Percival asked.

"I see life, energy, that's now going to mix itself into the soil when I let go. Close your eyes. What can you feel?"

Percival shrugged. "I feel like I'm sitting in the forest. The plants smell nice."

Merlin laughed. "I can feel life and magic all around me. It's very different from when I'm in the castle."

Both opened their eyes. "Do different parts of the forest feel different, then?" The knight seemed genuinely curious.

"Yes. Take this clearing for example. The energy in here feels wonderful."

"That's why we've never gone back to the creepy clearing!" Percival deduced.

"What are you talking about?"

"Every time I help you gather herbs, we come here. One time, though, we didn't. We went to a different clearing, and it didn't feel right."

Merlin knew exactly what he was talking about. There was another clearing where a specific herb grew, but the warlock was more than convinced that something horrible had taken place there. "Percival, you shouldn't have been able to feel anything. The magic has to be incredibly strong in a place before non-magical people pick up on anything."

Percival looked uncomfortable, and Merlin gasped. "You've used magic before!" the warlock exclaimed.

"No, I really haven't," Percival argued.

"I really don't believe you."

"Fine. It was one spell, one time. The druids tried to teach me, but it became very clear how hopeless I was."

"Can you show me?" Merlin couldn't hide his excitement.

"I don't even think it's going to work. I only managed to do it once, and that was more than eight years ago." Merlin just raised an eyebrow. "Fine." Percival spoke a familiar word, but nothing happened. He tried again with his hand held out, palm up. After several more tries, the knight's eyes finally flashed gold, and a little ball of light appeared in his hand only to fizzle out seconds later.

Merlin clapped. "That's why you knew that that clearing was creepy. I think you're picking up on some of the magical currents floating around without realizing it."

"Is Arthur going to be mad?"

"Percival, you can do one harmless spell, and you haven't used it since coming to Camelot. If he can forgive me setting a dragon on Camelot, he isn't going to care about you. I'm not going to bring it up, so you can if you want to."

"You released the dragon?"

Merlin groaned. "I guess I didn't mention that. I had good reason, I swear."

Percival laughed. "I believe you."

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The next morning found the knights, Arthur, Merlin, and Gale quietly leaving the city. Mordred was glad to see that Leon and Elyan had joined them, though they were keeping their distance from himself and Merlin. "Do you know what we're doing?" Mordred asked Gale. He and Gale had become friends. Mordred quite like having someone younger around. Everyone else was much older than him. Even Merlin, the youngest of the bunch, had about a decade on him.

Gale shook his head. "I know this has something to do with why Merlin and Arthur were fighting, but that's about it."

"You didn't tell him anything, Merlin?" Mordred called up to the warlock. Merlin hadn't received an apple from Leon that morning. The senior knight always made a point to make sure that Merlin ate something when he went somewhere with the knights. It had become something of a tradition. Mordred could tell it was weighing on Emrys.

Merlin laughed. "He'll figure it out soon enough."

"Take a guess, Gale," Mordred invited.

"Umm…" the servant said. "We're using training time to do this, and we're going to be back before nightfall. I'm carrying about ten million different weapons, and Merlin's got quite a large bag with him. So, it seems to me that you're going to be doing something dangerous, and Merlin, Gaius's apprentice, might have to heal someone."

"You're not wrong," Gwaine laughed from behind them.

Mordred had to stop himself from laughing at the boy's puzzled expression. "We're almost there," Arthur called back. The mage turned to look up the forest path. In front of him was a sea of red cloaks surrounding Merlin's blue one. Sunlight was streaming through the trees ahead, so Mordred assumed that was their destination.

The knights finally entered a large, grass-covered clearing, and Gale piled his weapons on the ground, looking very relieved to have arrived.

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"So, I'm curious," Gwaine spoke up. "Can we see Merlin and Mordred fight each other in that fancy new style?" He was convinced it would make an amazing display.

"I'm game," Merlin agreed. Mordred nodded his assent, and both mages took off their cloaks.

Gwaine hurried to gather with the other knights to one side of the clearing while Merlin and Mordred took up stances opposite one another. Mordred was the first to strike, though Merlin blocked it in that odd way of his. As the two continued to trade blows, it became clear that Mordred was holding back a little bit for Merlin's sake, though Merlin was holding his own extremely well. Gwaine had often heard sword fighting described as a dance, and this style was the closest he'd seen. The two mages were constantly moving around one another, shifting just enough to dodge an attack. It was all very calculated and fluid.

Gwaine grinned as he realized something else, though. They were using next to no strength. The style itself would be enough to defeat an unskilled or unprepared opponent, but a trained knight might be able to counter it. A strong enough hit would render the mages' style ineffective.

Merlin, of course, lost to Mordred, so Gwaine took his place. "Keep fighting in the same style," he instructed the younger knight. Mordred look extremely confident.

Gwaine attacked first, and promptly had his sword batted out of his hand. "One more try?"

"It's going to have the same result," Mordred replied, but he took up a stance anyway.

Gwaine managed to keep a grip on his sword this time, so he traded a few blows with Mordred, neither doing serious damage. After a minute, though, Gwaine shifted away from his personal style, and made an effort to mimic Percival's strength-maximizing one.

Mordred lost a minute later, and the knights cheered. "I still won the first round," the mage said. "It's a tie."

"I'll accept that," Gwaine agreed before calling out, "Merlin, get over here and take the kid down!" Gale looked confused, but Merlin stepped back out into the middle of the clearing. The warlock had discarded his sword after his previous match. Gwaine laughed at Mordred's concerned look.

"Astrice!" Merlin shouted as he threw his hand out. Mordred raised his sword in front of him, and a faint blue shield took the brunt of the spell.

"What just happened?" Gwaine wondered.

"That's been their project for the past month, apparently," Arthur answered. "They've been enchanting Mordred's sword to draw on his magic so that he doesn't have to actually say anything for certain spells to work. Gaius didn't think it was going to work, but it seems like it does."

The two mages were continuing to throw spells at one another, and they were actually starting to become visible. At one point, Merlin deflected Mordred's fireball and sent a tree-branch back at him. Gwaine was laughing hysterically, and Gale's jaw just kept dropping wider and wider. It seemed that the new servant was fine with magic. Even Elyan and Leon were impressed, if not wholly comfortable.

Finally, Gwaine felt the ground shake as he watched Mordred fall over. Merlin hadn't even moved, so the warlock must have concentrated the tremor on his opponent. A second later, Merlin held a fireball in his hand, and stood just feet from Mordred. "I yield," the knight said. Merlin grinned and offered him a hand up.

"So?" Elyan asked. "We're never going to be able to take you down. What are we learning today?" Everyone stared at the queen's brother who shrugged. "You've had a decade to destroy Camelot, and believe that you could actually do it with that power," he told Merlin. "I trust you."

Merlin beamed. Gwaine could tell that the knight's acceptance meant a great deal to his friend. "You may not be able to fight back," Merlin told them, "but you can dodge spells. Think fast!" The warlock conjured some sort of glowing orb and threw it directly at the knights. Gwaine didn't have time to get clear and was surprised when nothing seemed to happen.

"Did you miss?" he asked.

Merlin shook his head. "That was only light. What if it had been a fireball? You'd be pretty crispy right now."

By silent consensus, everyone but Leon, Mordred, and Gale charged at Merlin, hoping that sheer numbers could overwhelm their powerful friend. All were rather painfully stopped when they ran into the bluish dome that the warlock had erected around himself. All tried their best to break through, but nothing succeeded. Gwaine stopped when he heard Mordred laughing on the sidelines.

"What are you laughing at?" Gwaine asked.

"That shield has withstood dragon fire," Mordred explained. "You aren't going to get through it."

Gwaine turned back around to look through the shield at his friend. Merlin's eyes were glowing, but it was getting less creepy every time. The knight could have sworn the warlock was smirking at him. He switched his gaze back to Mordred when the knight knelt on the grass and placed one hand flat against the earth. Mordred's eyes glowed gold, and Gwaine heard Percival gasp. He looked back at Merlin to see the grass from the clearing growing upwards to tangle around Merlin's legs. The warlock seemed to be struggling against it, but it was taking his concentration away from the shield. In the next moment, the shield flickered and Gwaine jumped through. He directed his sword at Merlin's throat, but the warlock just looked at him, and his sword became too hot to hold.

"Ow!" Gwaine complained.

"I don't give up that easily," Merlin responded unapologetically. "Good job, Mordred. I was fighting your spell the whole way."

"Mordred?" Percival asked. "Just how powerful are you?"

"That isn't really something that I can measure," the sorcerer responded.

Gwaine was feeling curious, though, so he decided to press the issue. "On a one to ten scale of Arthur to Morgana, where do you fall?" he asked.

Mordred shrugged. "It depends on the circumstance, but maybe eight?"

Merlin nodded in agreement. "That seems right," he confirmed.

So, Mordred was extremely powerful, Gwaine thought to himself. He gasped when he realized that Merlin had beaten him, though. "Merlin, how powerful does that make you then?" Gwaine wondered.

Merlin looked uncomfortable. "You know, I really couldn't place myself on that scale. There are so many factors, and…" the warlock trailed off.

"Fifteen," Mordred stated.

"That isn't on the scale, Mordred," Elyan corrected.

"Neither is Merlin."

* * *

So, Percival really doesn't have very much magic, and he isn't going to suddenly develop a ton of power. I just wanted to include a character that isn't magically all-powerful, but who can actually still understand Merlin.

Please review!


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin.

I am on fictionpress as BookWyrm99 if anyone's interested.

This is sort of a transition chapter between the reveal part of this story and the actual danger that they have to deal with. However, Merlin's magic still has to be revealed to the council and Camelot in general, and I think I'm going to include some sort of reveal to Morgana. Plus, the knights are still trying to figure their friend out.

I've written the next chapter already, and Merlin's getting a girlfriend. I've made her up, and I've included a previous history with Merlin that takes place in the five years the show skipped after season 4.

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The training continued in much the same way for the following two weeks, and Arthur watched Merlin settle into the new routine of being completely himself among the knights. The warlock was still keeping his magic a secret from the majority of Camelot's residents, but it didn't seem to bother him. Arthur was still attempting to come up with a way to convince the council to accept magic, and he wasn't prepared to openly support magic until he had his knights and the council behind him.

After the first day, Elyan had completely accepted Merlin. Personally, Arthur believed that Gwen had spoken with him, but he was just grateful that the queen's brother was participating in training with Merlin and Mordred. Percival was still completely fine with magic for whatever reason, and Gwaine valued Merlin's friendship far too much to actually be angry.

That only left Leon that Arthur had to work on. The senior knight had continued to come to the practice sessions, though he remained extremely uncomfortable. It was the one thing wearing on Merlin. Despite his friend's beliefs, the king was actually quite observant. Even when he himself hadn't looked out for Merlin in the warlock's first year in Camelot, Leon had always gone out of his way to make sure the Merlin was okay. Merlin had cobbled together his own little family in Camelot, and Leon had always been something of an uncle to the clumsy servant. Arthur hoped the senior knight would come around soon.

"Merlin!" Arthur called out as he caught sight of a familiar blue cloak retreating around a corner. Gwen had made that cloak while he and Merlin weren't speaking, and Arthur hadn't actually thought much of it, but he had been reading up on laws before the purge recently and come across something rather interesting. The court sorcerer of Camelot traditionally wore a cloak in that exact color and style. It didn't seem that Merlin was aware of it, but when Arthur had questioned his wife on how she had designed the cloak, her only response had been, "Carefully."

"You're up early," Merlin observed as he turned around to speak to Arthur.

Gale had actually come to wake the king when a messenger had arrived, but Merlin didn't need to know that. "No, you're just up late," Arthur argued. Merlin rolled his eyes. "We've just received a message from one of the patrols that was sent out. They found six knights injured and delirious near the eastern border, and they're convinced that magic was in play. We're riding out within the hour."

Merlin just nodded, and Arthur was grateful that his friend didn't ask any more questions at the moment. "I'll get the others. Can you send Gale up to the eastern wall of the Castle? Gwaine and/or Mordred sometimes wake up early and go up there."

"You know far too much about everyone's habits." Arthur headed back to his room to do as Merlin asked, though. His days of ignoring the warlock were long gone.

Merlin had been right, Arthur reflected to himself an hour later as the round table rode east. Mordred had been on the wall when Gale found him, and the two had had to run through the castle to be on time to ride with the others.

Arthur looked behind him to where Gwaine had pulled his horse alongside Merlin's and was whispering conspiratorially to the warlock. Merlin rolled his eyes at first, but then he grinned, and Arthur knew that nothing good would come of it. Merlin's eyes glowed gold briefly, and Elyan's hair turned a spectacular shade of blue. Gwaine pressed a finger to his lips when Percival noticed, and the strong man kept quiet. Elyan remained completely oblivious. Arthur pressed his lips together and looked forward once more.

The rest of the day passed in much the same way. Elyan had pulled Mordred aside once he realized his hair was blue, and they two had given Gwaine a set of spectacularly bushy eyebrows. They reached the point where Gwaine had been able to tie them back behind his head with a piece of string. The prank war between Elyan and Gwaine just exploded from that point. Merlin and Mordred never actually cast spells on one another, though, preferring just to be used as weapons between the two warring knights.

Even Leon wore something resembling a grin when they made camp that night. Gwaine and Elyan resembled children's illustrations more than esteemed knights of Camelot, though they had been promised the enchantments would wear off before nightfall.

Merlin had looked positively delighted that he had another servant with him to help set up camp, and Gale was just delighted to be in on the secret, so camp was set up within minutes, and everyone gathered around a campfire where Gale was showing Merlin his family's secret recipe for rabbit.

"Merlin, you have a scar from a serket," Percival pointed out once everyone had food.

Arthur realized that the warlock's shirt must have ridden up while he was crouched by the fire. He wasn't aware that his friend had ever been attacked by one of those creatures, though.

"What makes you say that?" Merlin asked. "Maybe it's from something else."

Percival shook his head. "We had a problem with serkets when I was young, and I've seen too many wounds like yours. I've never seen someone survive it, though."

Merlin shrugged. "I guess I don't really need to lie about it anymore. Morgana tied me up and set serkets on me a while ago. I had to call the great dragon to get me out of that one."

"Merlin!" Arthur exclaimed. "What happened to no more secrets?"

Arthur almost laughed as the servant shrugged uncomfortably. "It wasn't really a secret. There's far too much for me to actually have told you everything. Morgana's tried to kill me a lot, actually."

"Only you, Merlin, would forget to mention an attempt on your life." Arthur was still struggling to wrap his mind around the number of times his friend had evaded death, and he knew that there would be at least another time that Merlin hadn't mentioned for every one he had.

"Enough about me," Merlin stated. "Who wants dessert?" The warlock revealed a small satchel filled with berries that he had probably found as they were getting ready to make camp.

"I'll pass." Arthur knew that Merlin was smart, but he still wasn't willing to eat random berries. Leon refused them as well, and Gale had mysteriously disappeared to get more firewood. Mordred and Gwaine, on the other hand, gratefully accepted their shares, and they even convinced Percival and Elyan to have a few once the knights had seen they weren't poisonous.

It was actually a normal night, and Arthur was grateful for it… up until Leon roused him in the middle of the night. Leon had been given first watch, and Percival was supposed to have taken second. "What's wrong?" Arthur whispered.

"Don't bother," Leon replied in a normal voice. "I've been making quite a bit of noise already. No one else will wake up."

"What?" Arthur shook off the last vestiges of sleep and let Leon pull him to his feet.

"I tried to wake Percival for the second watch, but he remained asleep. Everyone except you and Gale are the same. They all seem to be having nightmares." Arthur saw Gale huddled by the fire. The servant looked relieved when he saw the king was awake.

"Okay, let's try to wake them up again. I want to be completely certain something's wrong."

Leon and Gale moved across the fire while Arthur knelt next to Merlin. "Merlin!" the king called, shaking the warlock roughly. He could hear the other two doing the same thing across the fire. "Merlin, wake up!" Merlin shifted in his sleep but didn't wake. "Come on, Merlin," Arthur begged. "I'm letting you use magic in front of me now. Wake up and enjoy it!" Arthur gave up and rested a hand on his friend's shoulder for a moment while trying to come up with something else to do.

Suddenly, Merlin's eyes snapped open. Arthur caught a flash of gold before he was thrown backwards only to be set down carefully mid-flight. "Sire!" Leon exclaimed as Arthur looked up to see a very awake Merlin sitting some distance from him.

"I'm sorry, Arthur. I didn't mean to do that," Merlin apologized. Leon looked ready to argue.

"What happened?" Arthur cut the other knight off.

"I was having a really vivid nightmare, and I guess I just reacted when you woke me."

"It took us a while to wake you, Merlin. We can't wake the other knights at all," Arthur told him.

The warlock took in the scene around him before sucking in a breath. "Are there any berries left?"

Arthur was about to berate him for being hungry at a time like this, but then he realized that Merlin, being Merlin, probably had a different plan in mind for them. Gale tossed him the satchel, and Merlin tipped one of the berries onto his palm. Merlin's eyes glowed gold for a moment, and a black mist rose from the berry. "I know what's going on," Merlin stated.

"Could you tell us?" Arthur prompted.

"The berries were enchanted. You, Leon, and Gale didn't eat any, right? I'm fairly certain that this is Morgana's magic."

"She was watching us?" Arthur asked. "That boded extremely badly for them if his sister could observe them at any time. He was relieved when Merlin shook his head.

"I think she'll be keeping her distance in case Mordred senses her. She's still not sure how loyal he is to you. It's more likely that she found out we were riding out here and guessed where we'd camp. Morgana probably cursed the berries this morning then cleared out."

"So she probably won't even show up here until tomorrow sometime?" Arthur asked.

Merlin nodded. "I've read about this curse. It's meant to trap its victims in their worst nightmares. If we'd all eaten the berries, we could be sleeping out here until we died of dehydration or worse. She won't risk showing up until she's certain we're all dead."

"How did I break your curse then?" Arthur asked. He certainly hadn't done anything intentionally.

Merlin nodded. "Fears can be overcome. The right stimulus needs to be applied, though."

"I didn't do anything. I don't even know what your worst fear is."

"Yes you do. It's you, killing me for my magic."

Arthur's jaw dropped, but he decided not to get emotional about it. Instead, he smacked Merlin on the arm. "Why are you still afraid of that, you idiot? I'm not going to kill you!"

Merlin laughed and stood up. He quickly grabbed the bucket of water than was sitting next to the fire and poured it all over Mordred who promptly woke up and scrambled away from the fire. The mage looked around frantically in confusion for a few seconds before he realized that he was safe.

"So we could have just dumped water on everyone?" Arthur asked. Merlin always made things more difficult than they needed to be.

"Just Mordred. Have you ever heard of the Dust of Fear?" Merlin asked Mordred. Arthur assumed that was the name of the curse.

Mordred nodded. "There was so much fire," he said.

"You're afraid of fire?" Leon asked. Arthur noted that that was probably the first time Leon had addressed the mage in a fortnight.

Mordred shook his head. "Not fire. Being burned at the stake." Leon actually looked as if he felt sorry for asking.

"What about the others?" Arthur asked. Percival, Gwaine, and Elyan were still asleep.

"I might be able to wake Gwaine," Merlin offered, "but I'd rather not have you listening in."

Gwaine had secrets? Arthur didn't think that was possible. "Why? What's he afraid of?" the king asked.

"Some people's fears aren't simply death," Merlin snapped. "Go tell Elyan that he's a good, responsible brother while I work on Gwaine."

Arthur threw his hands up and went to do as he was told. He couldn't hear anything that Merlin was saying across the campsite, and Gwaine woke up almost at the same time that Elyan did. Merlin quickly scrambled over to Percival, and Arthur managed to catch a few words.

"We're all still here," the warlock was saying. "Percival's entire village was destroyed before he ran into Lancelot," Merlin explained. "He fears losing everyone he cares about again." Percival woke up a moment later.

Once everything had been explained to the other knights, the question of what to do next was brought up. "I'm not going to be able to fall back asleep," Mordred volunteered.

Everyone else seemed to agree with that, so Arthur made the decision to ride on. The sun would be rising in a couple of hours anyway. The group quickly broke camp and continued on their way. It was dark for a while, but once the sun began to rise, Arthur could clearly see how shaken up everyone who had been cursed was. Even Merlin- the warlock had an insane amount of self control- looked close to breaking down.

Arthur finally broke the silence when the sun was high in the sky. "We can't leave ourselves so vulnerable again tonight," the king stated.

"I believe there's a druid camp several hours ride further," Mordred suggested. "They actually really like you now that they know you're the Once and Future King and you've stopping hunting them down."

"Once and Future King?" Leon asked.

"We aren't going there right now," Arthur replied. "It's some kind of druid prophecy that has to do with Merlin being the most powerful magic user to ever exist, and it really just hurts to think about."

Leon laughed. "That reminds me." He tossed an apple to Merlin. "Eat something."

The smile that crossed Merlin's face practically glowed.

* * *

So, I got tired of Leon being mad at Merlin.

Please review! I'm always looking for ways to improve.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin.

So, I'm introducing a girlfriend for Merlin in the chapter. I haven't really developed her character that much yet, but I feel like Merlin would fall for someone just as quirky and outspoken as he is. She would have to put up with all of his shenanigans.

I'm going to start steering this story back to Camelot. They still have to repeal the ban on magic, after all.

Let me know what character interactions you guys want to see. Most of this story is still unwritten.

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The rest of their journey that day was spent mostly in silence. Even though Leon had come around, Merlin still hadn't appeared to have shaken off the after-effects of the curse. Nor had any of the others, Leon observed. The senior knight was extremely glad that he hadn't been likewise affected, but he was at a loss as to how to help his friends. The one thing he did know was that Merlin was still the loyal friend he had known him to be.

Mordred's fear had been the pyre, as any mage's should be. What had surprised Leon was that Merlin's was very specifically being killed by the king. Dying wasn't Merlin's worst fear, it was being turned on by his brother, the man he had pledged to protect. Leon could understand that, and he finally could believe that Merlin was sincere.

It was mid-afternoon by the time Merlin and Mordred randomly veered off the road. "This way!" Merlin called back to the confused knights. "Try not to make your weapons so obvious," he added when they caught up. The druids are non-violent for the most part.

Leon shifted his cloak so that it covered his sword a bit more and threw the dagger in his boot into his saddle bag. He did know that the druids wouldn't hurt them. They had saved his life many years ago, after all. Merlin's legendary status explained why they later gave up the cup so easily, Leon thought to himself.

As they ventured farther from the road, Merlin let his horse drift back into the middle of the group, and he pulled up the hood of his cloak. "It isn't going to work, Merlin," Mordred laughed.

"I can hope," Merlin grumbled. "They stare at me, and it's really weird."

"Visit the druids often Merlin?" Leon asked.

"Do you remember about for years ago when I disappeared for a couple of months?"

Leon nodded. He hadn't ever really learned what had happened.

"I spent a large portion of it among the druids, trying to deal with a magical threat. A very powerful rogue mage was threatening one of them, so they asked me for help. I've kept in touch with several of the groups that live on the outskirts of Camelot."

"You know the group that lives here, then?" Leon supposed it made sense that Merlin would seek out the company of people who accepted, and even used, magic.

"I do, but I'm not sure which group is here at the moment. This campsite is used from time to time by about three different groups of druids."

A moment after Merlin spoke, several cloaked figures emerged from the forest around them. Mordred and Merlin both dismount, and Leon hurried to follow suit along with the other knights.

"Iseldir," Mordred greeted the man who had lowered his hood. "We offer greetings and good faith."

"And us to you," the druid responded. Leon assumed that this was some kind of traditional greeting that Mordred had been taught.

"Would you be willing to give us safe haven tonight? Our journey is dangerous, and we would like to rest easily."

"King Arthur," Iseldir said as he faced the king. "Do you feel comfortable sleeping amongst us, knowing our beliefs?"

Leon saw Arthur grin slightly. "Your beliefs are now my beliefs. Emrys has managed to change my mind about my father's more terrible ideals."

The look of shock on the druid leader's face was quite entertaining. He didn't seem to be able to form words.

"Peace, Iseldir," Arthur said. "I cannot very well continue to hate magic when my best friend and one of my knights both use it. It will take time and a great deal of patience, but magic will return to Camelot."

The druid finally seemed to have regained his voice. "King Arthur, you and your party are most welcome in our camp." The other hooded figures came forward to take the horses while Iseldir led their party deeper into the woods. They finally came upon quite a large camp. The druids were cheerfully going about their day, though everyone froze when Iseldir led the knights of Camelot forward. For once, Leon almost wished the bright red wasn't so distinctive.

One child accidentally dropped her doll in a bucket of water, but she seemed too afraid to retrieve it. Leon wondered if the fear would ever really fade out of these people who had been hunted for two decades. Logically knowing that the king had made peace with them, and convincing themselves that they were safe among his knights were two very different things.

Arthur very obviously gestured for Mordred to go help the young girl, and Leon was very proud of the young king in that moment. Mordred slowly made his way to kneel by the water buck, and he used magic to retrieve the doll and dry it before giving it back to its shocked owner. The little girl gave him a hug before running over to who Leon assumed was an older brother. Mordred returned to Arthur's side. "We are very grateful that you have allowed us into your home," Arthur said clearly. "You have nothing to fear from us, and we know very well that we have nothing to fear from you."

The camp was suddenly abuzz with activity as everyone began talking excitedly. Iseldir took that as his queue to lead them over to the edge of the camp where an unused fire pit was located. "I'm afraid that we have not tents to offer you, but be assured that our camp is heavily warded and very safe. You may leave at any time, but it is extremely difficult for anything to get in," Iseldir told them. "We will feast tonight in honor of our newfound friends, and the return of old ones." The druid looked directly at Merlin as he said that, leaving no doubt in Leon's mind that he knew who the warlock was despite the cloak.

"You've done more than enough," Mordred assured him.

Iseldir nodded slightly and retreated to speak to others in the camp.

Merlin grinned and pushed back his hood slightly. "They might actually stare at you more than me tonight!" the warlock rejoiced.

Mordred just laughed.

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Several hours later found Gwaine feasting heartily with the rest of his travelling companions. The curse had really shaken him up, but the cheerful atmosphere of the druid camp had somewhat driven off the after-effects. He had seen himself becoming his father: serving what he fully believed to be a noble cause only to realize the truth when it was far too late. It was why he hadn't wanted to become a knight at first. As a simple commoner, he controlled what he put his faith in.

The knight deliberately turned his thoughts back to the present where he and his friends were sprawled comfortably around their campfire after having helped the druids prepare part of the feast. Mordred was the last to return from cleaning his dishes and had begun nudging and elbowing Merlin. The warlock was grumbling about something, but Mordred wasn't letting up.

"Fine," Merlin said clearly enough for Gwaine to hear. The warlock let out a low whistle which seemed to catch the attention of druids in other parts of the camp. "What should I do?" he asked and lowered his hood completely.

"What's going on?" Elyan asked. Gwaine had been about to ask the same thing.

"Merlin's going to tell us a story," Mordred explained.

"How about Strength, Courage, and Magic?" Merlin asked. Gwaine could tell his friend was trying to be grumpy about the attention, but Merlin never really could resist making others smile. The title seemed oddly familiar, though.

"Once upon a time, there were three fierce warriors," Merlin began. He conjured three figures from the sparks of the campfire, and they hung in the air for a moment before the breeze swept them away. Gwaine noticed that many of the druids had gathered around their small campfire to listen in. It dawned on his just how strange their current situation was. The king of Camelot, where magic was illegal, was sitting in a druid encampment, watching his best friend perform magic.

"Their names were Strength, Courage, and Magic. Now, Courage was determined to retrieve a powerful spear from a far-off land, so he set off on his quest." The image of a spear hung in the air as Merlin continued his story.

"Strength and Magic discovered treachery after he left, though. An evil witch had cast a curse on courage that would drain him of his strength before he could complete his quest. So, Strength and Magic set out after their friend." Two fiery figures appeared as they ran after a third.

"Finally, they caught up to him, and Magic was able to remove the curse. The three set off to complete the perilous quest. They faced many dangers along the way, but Strength and Courage were able to overcome any obstacle with a little help from Magic." The three figures danced through the air, fighting all sorts of fiery beasts. Gwaine's attention was captured completely by the tale.

"The three finally made it to their destination," Merlin stated dramatically as he conjured a castle in the flames. "There was one obstacle left to face, though. The Wyvern were fierce protectors of their home. Magic himself defeated the beasts while Strength and Courage pushed on to finish the quest." The images were becoming ever more complex as the story went on, and Merlin's eyes never seemed to stop glowing out of the corner of Gwaine's eye.

"Courage and Strength made their way through the ancient fortress where they finally found the spear they had been looking for." A fiery figure raised his spear in triumph as his friend celebrated with him. They were soon rejoined by the third one. "Magic rejoined the two, and the three friends were reunited. Their quest had been successful, so they set off for home. When their long journey finally ended, everyone rejoiced, and the land prospered for many years. The spear had been the source of the evil witch's power, and she could harm them no longer without it." A fiery woman- who bore a remarkable resemblance to Morgana in Gwaine's opinion- exploded into sparks as Merlin ended the story.

"Was it true?" one of the druid children called out.

Merlin smiled at the young boy. "Every good story has a grain of truth in it."

The druids seemed to have come to expect that answer, for they slowly melted away back to the other parts of the camp. Gwaine's attention drifted back to his circle of friends. He raised an eyebrow in confusion as he noticed the druid who was seated next to Merlin and leaning against him. None of the other druids had actually entered the circle of knights, and Gwaine had gotten the impression that most of them were too in awe to actually approach the great Emrys.

Merlin seemed confused at first, then he jumped when he realized there was someone beside him. The woman burst into laughter, and Gwaine took a moment to admire her long, wavy, honey-blonde hair. "You were really caught up in your story-telling," she finally managed to say to Merlin between laughs.

"Emma!" Merlin exclaimed happily. "I didn't think you were here."

"I just arrived, actually. I'm travelling to meet my parents in a few days."

"Merlin?" Arthur asked. "Who's your friend?"

"Lady Emily Woodland, daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Woodland," the woman introduced herself cheerfully.

"They have no children," Leon stated.

"I was stolen at birth by a witch who felt spurned by my father," the woman corrected.

"That's why the Duke of Woodland supported my father's laws against magic so strongly," Arthur confirmed.

"What he didn't know until four years ago is that the witch wanted nothing to do with me, so she left me in the forest to die. The druids found and raised me as one of their own. Somehow the witch found out that I was still alive, so she began trying to kill me once again. Iseldir contacted Merlin, and he was able to deal with the witch. It's a really long and complicated story, but, basically, I learned who I was and met my parents about four years ago."

"They've never made any sort of official announcement about it."

"In Camelot? That would go over well," she answered sarcastically. "One of Uther's strongest supporters suddenly claiming that his long lost daughter is a druid? Everyone would expect him to have been enchanted."

Gwaine searched his memory for Duke Woodland as the others spoke. "Isn't he that one I used to hate?" he asked Merlin.

Merlin laughed. "You haven't complained about him in years, Gwaine. I thought you had forgotten he existed."

Lady Emily looked amused as well. "He's changed a great deal since being reunited with me. My parents no longer believe magic is evil. It may have taken me from them, but the druids kept me safe until we could be reunited. In their eyes, magic has balanced itself."

"He's been at court less than usual in recent years," Arthur commented.

She nodded. "I've been splitting my time between several of the druid groups in Camelot and my family's estate. When they go to court, I come out here. My father also hasn't felt as comfortable in court recently. Everyone still expects him to mercilessly hunt down magic users, and he feels ashamed of his past actions." She turned her gaze to Arthur. "That's something which Iseldir suggested you might now identify with."

Arthur nodded, and Gwaine caught a smirk from Merlin. The warlock must really have been enjoying having the king's support. "I'm in the very early stages of bringing magic back to Camelot," Arthur admitted. "So far, only my most trusted knights know what I intend."

"You need the council's support," the lady said with a grin.

Merlin shifted to look at her. "I know that tone," the warlock accused. "What are you planning?"

She bit her lip. "It may be time for the Duke's estranged daughter to make an appearance in court."

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Arthur wasn't sure what Lady Emily meant. He was certain that she was who she said she was. Merlin- he hated to admit it- tended to be right about those kinds of things, and the warlock had had four years to find out whether she was lying. "Didn't you just say it would be a bad idea for you to return to court?" the king asked.

She nodded. "Up until now, it would have been. However, you're now on my side. I can freely admit to having been raised by the druids without risking my life."

Arthur was still confused. "Do you have magic?"

"No."

"Then you wouldn't have been risking your life. I made my peace with your people years ago."

She sighed. "Most people saw it as a sort of 'out of sight out of mind' deal. None of us wanted to risk coming to Camelot for fear of being accused of consorting with magic users."

Arthur hadn't ever thought of things that way, and he once again cursed himself for not having accepted Merlin and his magic a long time ago. The warlock would have been able to tell him things like that. "You're more than welcome in Camelot, but how does that help me?"

"Here's what I would suggest. Take care of whatever it is that's brought you out here, then return to Camelot. You can stop at my parents' estate along the way with a note for my father. He'll come to court with you, and you can claim you simply met on the road. Bring up the subject of legalizing magic to the council. My father has managed to identify several supporters, and he'll let them know what's going to happen. They'll voice their support while everyone else is stunned."

"Where do you come into this?" Arthur thought he might just have found someone more confusing than Merlin, and that was saying something.

"I'm going to show up the next day. That way no one can suggest I placed an enchantment on you. My appearance is going to highlight how kind the druid people are, and how magic doesn't corrupt everything it touches."

Arthur carefully thought through everything she'd said. "That might just work," he agreed. "I wasn't sure any of the council members would support me."

"Could you help us with another thing, Emma?" Merlin asked. Arthur noticed that his former servant was still sitting quite close to her. "A patrol was attacked half a day's ride from here, and we strongly suspect that Morgana was behind it. She's been stirring up all kinds of trouble lately."

The druid woman's eyes flashed in concern. "Merlin, I actually just came from the north. That's where Morgana's hiding out right now. She's attempting to hire mages to help her attack Camelot. I was with the druids that she approached. They, of course, refused, but I learned enough of her plan. She's having a tough time recruiting anyone, so it could be another few weeks before she tries anything. I was going to have my father send word to Camelot."

Arthur's eyes widened at the news. How had he missed that? "It's a decoy at the very least, if not a trap," he breathed.

"What is, Sire?" Leon asked.

"The reports we've been getting from this side of the kingdom. Morgana's headed straight for the heart of Camelot. We need to turn back."

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Please review! I'm always looking for ways to improve!


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin.

So, this chapter is a little short, but it's been a few days, so I felt I should post something.

This chapter is really just a transition while they head to meet Duke Woodland (Emma's father). He'll make an appearance in the next chapter which will hopefully be much longer. I'm also going to develop Merlin and Emma's interactions a bit more. So far they've really just sat around a campfire together and ridden on a horse.

I also almost forgot that Gale had come on this trip, so I just mentioned him in this chapter. I promise, he's going to become more of a main character once again back in Camelot.

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Arthur woke at sunrise the next morning. They had decided to stay the night with the druids as no one had gotten more than a few hours of sleep the night before. Sir Leon actually hadn't slept at all since he had been on first watch. Everyone had seemed more relaxed in the safety of the druid camp, and Arthur took a moment to appreciate the irony. The king of Camelot and his knights felt completely at home amid a group of magic sympathizers.

The king glanced around to see that a few druids were moving about, but all of his knights were still asleep, along with Gale. Merlin was nowhere to be found. Arthur scanned the surrounding area once again, and he finally spotted his manservant and what appeared to be Lady Emily quite a distance away from the camp. His view was obstructed by several trees, but the two seemed to be standing just a little bit too close to one another. It was like Morgana all over again. Merlin really needed to stop chasing after noble women.

Arthur gasped as he came to a realization. Merlin hadn't been attracted to Morgana, though, had he? Every time the prince had caught his servant paying too much attention to the king's ward, he had just assumed that it was of a romantic nature- or as romantic as Merlin could be, anyway. Merlin had actually been protecting Camelot, though. It seemed that Arthur was going to have to form a few new opinions on his friend.

The king jumped when he realized that Merlin and Lady Emily were standing right next to him. He had been far too lost in thought. "How didn't I hear you?" he asked. "You can't walk that quietly through the woods."

Merlin laughed and shrugged. "I have many talents."

Arthur groaned. He knew his manservant had purposely been scaring off game.

"Emma and I have been talking, and her plan isn't going to work right now," the warlock added. "You can't tell the council that you want to legalize magic at the same time that you're arming Camelot against a magical assailant."

"Can I not make the point that we need magic to fight magic?" Arthur asked before realizing why he couldn't. "No, of course I can't. They'll think a magic user has enchanted me to make it easier for Morgana's allies to sneak into Camelot. My sister has terrible timing."

"I suppose I'll just have to wait to return to Camelot," Lady Emily sighed. "You should still meet with my father on your way back to Camelot. He'll give you shelter tomorrow night."

Arthur noticed a thoughtful expression on Merlin's face. "What if you still came to Camelot with us?" Merlin asked. "Not as Lady Woodland, but as Emily Fleet?"

Lady Emily grinned, but Arthur felt that he was missing something. "How would a false name help you?"

"It isn't a false name," the lady explained happily. "The druids had no last name for me, so they gave me one. That has been my name for most of my life."

"Why come to Camelot, though?"

"To get people to like me. Hopefully, they'll realize that I'm not pure evil, and once the threat from Morgana goes away, we can still carry out our plan. I'll simply claim that I continued to use my adopted name because I was afraid that I would be attacked when my true history came out."

"Won't they attack you anyway because you're a druid?" It was official. The woman was more confusing than Merlin.

Her grin grew bigger. "To most of the kingdom, Emily Fleet isn't a druid. I'm a dance instructor. I travel all over to noble's homes and teach them court dances. I'm actually highly sought after. Your queen actually tried to hire me last year, but I was hesitant to come to Camelot."

"It's true," Merlin confirmed. "I helped Gwen to make enquiries. Your wife is going to love you for bringing Master Fleet back with you."

Arthur had to admit that he loved making his wife happy. "Very well," he acquiesced. "However, I knew nothing of this. I simply ran into someone that Guinevere very much wants to meet, so I convinced her to come with me. You will, however, have my full support once you announce your parentage."

"I could not ask for more," Lady E- Master Fleet replied. Arthur was going to have to remember not to use her title.

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Leon readjusted his grip on the reins later that morning. The air was rather cool, but none of the knights had brought anything more than their usual red capes as it would quickly warm up later. Still, his lightweight gloves weren't doing much to protect his cold fingers.

Once everyone had woken up, the king and Merlin had explained the new plan. Their new druid friend- or not so new, in Merlin's case- had been saying goodbye to her friends among the other druids. Mordred had seemed disappointed to be leaving so soon, but there was also a trace of anticipation in the young knight's gaze. It made sense that he would be excited to help bring magic back to Camelot.

The king was several feet ahead of their party, riding next to Percival and Gale. Leon knew Arthur enjoyed the large man's silence. The king often used Percival to balance out Merlin's constant complaining. Whenever the king rode with the warlock, Merlin made sure to keep up a constant, and surprisingly non-repetitive, string of complaints. Whenever Arthur wasn't close enough to hear, though, those complaints mysteriously vanished. It cause no end of amusement among the knights.

Leon, Gwaine, Elyan, and Mordred were riding in a loose clump far enough behind that the king probably wouldn't be able to hear most of any conversation, and Merlin was further back yet. In the past, they wouldn't have let him be so far back from their protection, but now he really didn't need it. Emily Fleet was sharing the warlock's horse. The king had claimed that it was because Merlin didn't have the heavy metal armor that everyone else did, so the horse would better be able to carry two people, but Leon suspected he just wanted to watch Merlin embarrass himself in front of the lady.

Leon glanced back to make sure the warlock and dance instructor were still there, and noted that the king really wasn't going to get his wish. Merlin looked extremely comfortable. The two were actually laughing, and Emily had her arms wrapped around the warlock's waist.

"They're looking very cozy," Gwaine commented roguishly to the three knights immediately near him.

"Well, I suppose they've known each other for four years," Elyan commented. "They aren't exactly strangers."

Leon had to agree with that, but the two just seemed a little bit too familiar with one another. "What do you think, Mordred?" he asked.

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"You actually agreed to instruct Countess Amargo?" Merlin asked incredulously. That woman had less than no redeeming qualities.

He could feel Emma laughing against his back. "That wasn't my fault!" she protested, smacking his arm. "All I knew was that she wanted to hire me for several weeks to instruct her children."

"How did you not go insane?" Merlin had been serving wine at one of the feasts the countess had attended in Camelot, and he could barely stand that short amount of time.

Emma rested her chin on his shoulder so he could better hear her response. "Oh, I probably would have, except I mysteriously received a note after a few days claiming that my grandmother was severely ill. I, of course, left as quickly as I could." Merlin grinned at the mischievous note in her voice.

"What are your friends up to?" Emma asked after a moment. The knights had been stealing an increasing number of glances back at them, and Mordred was looking slightly uncomfortable.

Merlin urged his horse into a brief trot to catch up with the others. Their conversation abruptly cut off. "It'll be nice to sleep indoors tonight, won't it?" he asked cheerfully.

 _Merlin, I happen to be an extremely bad liar,_ Mordred's voice spoke inside his head. _Gwaine commented that you and Emily were looking rather cozy. I think I inadvertently confirmed his suspicions. Even Leon's convinced._

 _It isn't exactly a secret,_ Merlin responded in the same manner.

"What was that?" Gwaine asked, interrupting their conversation.

"What was what?" Mordred asked in confusion.

"You and Merlin keep staring at each other, and it's really creepy. I'm pretty sure the two of you've always done it, but you used to be more subtle about it."

"We were just talking," Mordred explained.

"Silently?" Gwaine asked skeptically.

"It's magic!" Mordred raised an eyebrow as if to say 'What did you expect?'

By that time, Arthur and Percival had slowed slightly to see what the commotion was about. Gale was a few seconds late on the uptake, but he eventually followed suit. "I apologize for sticking you with these idiots," Arthur said to Emma. It looked like he thought they were annoying her. "I would've let you ride with me if Merlin didn't weigh so little."

Emma laughed, and Merlin struggled to keep a straight face. "Thank you, Sire, but I'm quite happy where I am."

"I bet you are," Gwaine mumbled under his breath.

Merlin saw Percival's sharp gaze study the scene around him and watched as a look of comprehension spread across his face.

"Are you quite sure?" Arthur asked Emma. He still seemed oblivious, and Merlin was reminded of the reason that he had been able to keep his secret for a decade.

"Very," Emma replied.

"All right, what's going on?" Arthur asked. He had finally noticed Merlin's amusement.

"Merlin and Emily here seem to be just a touch too comfortable with each other, but Mordred won't tell us anything," Gwaine complained.

Merlin grimaced as Arthur turned his gaze back to him.

"In my defense," the warlock began, "I couldn't exactly tell you that I had a druid girlfriend whom I met while secretly using magic to help the druids."

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So, Merlin had to have been doing something in between seasons four and five! Why shouldn't he find himself a girlfriend?

Please review!


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin.

Thank you for the reviewers who pointed it out. Emily is Mistress Fleet from here on out. At some point, I will go back to change that in previous chapters.

This chapter is kinda sappy at the end. Sorry, but Arthur's feeling happy that his friend is happy. I know that Emily/Emma still hasn't really been developed very much. However, she's with a group of relatively nice people who are pretty accepting of everyone. She's going to become much more interesting when she has an entire castle of people to deal with.

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Mordred had never seen the king look so shocked. Having gone with Merlin to meet the druids several times in the past, Mordred already knew what Emma was to Merlin, and he quite liked her. Despite having been raised as Uther was hunting down her people, she had a great deal of confidence in herself and in others. It balanced out Merlin's tendency to mistrust and hide rather nicely. Unfortunately, Merlin was never going to have the trust of very many people. Even once Camelot accepted him for his magic, many of its citizens would always have the slight fear that he could turn on them.

Apparently, Emma hadn't always placed her trust in Merlin. They had been friends for a couple of years before something happened to change that. Mordred hadn't quite been able to pry the story of what exactly had happened out of them, though. What he did know was that for the past two years, Merlin and Emma had been writing to each other, the letters sent with various birds that Merlin enchanted. They ran into each other from time to time, but never for as long as either would like. Mordred was quite surprised that the two were as close as they were.

"I don't believe you," Arthur announced. "If even Guinevere didn't know about this, then it can't be true."

Merlin laughed. "Arthur, just because you're really bad at hiding relationships, it doesn't mean that the rest of us are," the warlock said.

"Pay up," Emma said to Merlin.

"What was the wager, and why wasn't I part of it?" Gwaine asked.

"I bet that someone would figure out we were together before noon. Merlin was convinced that it would take all of you until at least tomorrow to catch on."

Arthur looked quite affronted. "I'm not quite that oblivious," the king protested.

Merlin mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like 'ten years' under his breath.

"I heard that Merlin," Arthur growled. "I thought you didn't have any more secrets."

"I'm just used to not mentioning her to anyone. Gaius hasn't even met her yet."

"You were used to keeping magic a secret, but you told me all about that," Arthur argued.

"There isn't anything I can say to defend myself, is there?"

"No. I, however, am going to let you introduce her to my wife."

Merlin groaned, and Mordred felt bad for him. The queen was never going to forgive Merlin for keeping his relationship a secret.

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Several hours- and many questions- later brought the group within sight of Emily's home. Woodland Manor was quite large, and Arthur remembered that the Duke of Woodland was an extremely rich man.

Merlin's horse had pulled to the front of the group so that Emily could guide them down the correct paths, and Arthur took the time to look around. A decently sized village was settled just to their right, and the manor was slightly raised up on a hill. From what he could see of the people, they looked happy and well-fed. That normally resulted from either a prosperous growing season, or a caring master. Since Arthur knew for a fact that the crops had been having trouble that year, things boded well for his meeting with the Duke.

A cheerful servant met them in front of the manor and instructed several others to take their horses. "I am the Steward of this manor," he greeted them with a low bow. "We are honored by your presence, Sire." He studied the rest of their party quickly. "It's been some time since you've been here, Mistress Fleet. The Duke and Duchess will be extremely happy to see you."

Arthur sent Gale to check that their horses were properly taken care of while he, his knights, and Merlin were led inside. Another man was waiting to greet them, and Arthur immediately recognized him as the Duke of Woodland. "What brings you to my estate, Sire?" he asked after the proper greetings had been exchanged. Everyone had been taken to a large dining hall, and the Steward had disappeared.

Making sure that they were alone, Arthur responded, "Your daughter, actually."

The Duke wasn't quite fast enough to conceal his surprise, though he made an admirable effort. "My daughter was stolen as a baby, Sire."

"Father," Emily spoke up. "The king would like to repeal the ban on magic. I've told him about my past."

The Duke remained silent for a moment, and Arthur tried desperately not to fidget under the older man's scrutiny. "Is that true?"

Arthur nodded. "Recent events have shown me the error in my father's ways. I fully intend to legalize magic. However, only those in this room, my wife, and the servant who came with us are aware. Your daughter suggested that you might lend your support."

The Duke was still studying him, and Arthur could tell that the man was very suspicious. "I have no wish to be rude, but I must ask whether this is some kind of set-up to root out magic sympathizers."

Arthur nodded. The Duke was quite skilled. He hadn't admitted to anything yet. Even Uther wouldn't have arrested such a high-raking noble with proof or a confession of magic. "You should know that two of the people in this room are able to use magic. I've known about them for some time now, and I would trust them with my life. Magic cannot be inherently evil if two powerful mages are such loyal friends."

"Who would be so stupid as to practice magic in the very heart of Camelot?" the Duke asked incredulously. Arthur saw Merlin and Mordred raise their hands. Merlin actually used his magic to light a candle that was sitting on the table.

"Mordred has been a member of my round table for close to a year now," Arthur told him. "Merlin has been my manservant and friend for a decade. You've seen him in Camelot before."

"You really are the Once and Future King." The Duke paused. "Forgive me, my daughter has been telling me druid legends lately, but I could not believe until now that you are who she claims you to be."

Arthur smiled. "I would be suspicious if you had offered me your full support right away." It seemed that his lack of reaction to Merlin's magic had proven his honesty.

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They remained in the dining room for the rest of the night. Arthur had explained to the Duke that he would not be legalizing magic until the threat of Morgana was either dealt with or came to nothing. The Duke agreed that he would follow them to Camelot in a week or so. Oddly, he didn't have any objections to his daughter continuing to accompany them. It seemed that he was used to letting her lead her own life.

Gale and the Duchess had joined them for dinner, and Arthur was pleased with the behavior of his knights in the presence of their hosts. Said hosts actually seemed to be having a great time, though that might have had more to do with the presence of their daughter.

Soon after the plates were cleared away, the Duchess had a violin brought in and queried whether anyone else was musically inclined. It was quickly revealed that Percival was adept at the pipes, and, to Arthur's surprise, the commoner's instrument was soon brought to the knight.

"Who wants to help me move this table aside?" Emily asked as she jumped up. Merlin and Mordred managed it within seconds, leaving an empty space with chairs lining the edges. The Duchess and Percival took up chairs on the opposite side of the room. "Sire, as king, you may ask me for the first dance," she said to Arthur.

Arthur debated sitting out, but he quickly realized that he wasn't going to be given an option if the expressions of his knights were anything to go by. "Would you like to dance?" he finally asked and offered her his hand.

She accepted, and the Duchess struck up a tune that he knew the steps to. Percival actually followed along quite skillfully on the pipes. Arthur had been under the impression that several of the noblewomen at court were accomplished dancers, Guinevere among them, but Emily's skill was remarkable. She was every bit the talented dance instructor that she claimed to be.

"We'll be lucky to have you in Camelot," he told her sincerely at the end of the dance.

"Thank you, Sire," Emily responded with a smile.

Gwaine strode up beside them. "Might I claim the next dance?" he asked flirtatiously.

Emily laughed and nodded while Arthur returned to his seat next to the Duke. "You should be proud of your daughter," the king commented a time later. No one else way paying attention to their conversation, and Emily was onto her fourth dance partner. Sir Leon was one of the better dancers from among the knights. He had been raised as a noble, after all.

The Duke nodded. "She's perfect, and I'll be forever grateful to the druids for that."

"I've grown to quite like the druids," Arthur commented as they watched Mordred take his turn on the dance floor. He really didn't know what he was doing, and he and Emily ended up in fits of laughter by the end. "Mordred is one of my finest knights, yet he's a member of a group that, for a long time, I hunted down."

"I was not aware of his heritage," the Duke replied.

Arthur shrugged. "Most people aren't, though it isn't a secret. He'll tell the truth to anyone who asks."

"What of Merlin?" the Duke asked. "He isn't a druid, is he? My daughter had mentioned a friend in Camelot, though she refused to give me a name."

Arthur nodded in confirmation as he watch Merlin finally ask Emily to dance. The two twirled around the dance floor with an easy familiarity that actually surprised Arthur. Merlin, despite his usual friendly demeanor, rarely made new friends that he truly felt comfortable around.

"He's a decent dancer," the Duke commented.

"I'm shocked at how graceful that clumsy idiot can be when he tries."

The Duke laughed. "I believe that in this case it's more my daughter's work than his own. She can work miracles."

"So I see. I suppose she's had a few years to do so."

"Let them be happy, Sire," the Duke said much more seriously. "You fell in love with the daughter of a blacksmith. Don't let my daughter's rank get in their way."

Arthur noted that the man said his daughters rank rather than Merlin's lack of one, and the king's regard for the Duke grew. "I think of Merlin as a brother. I would never hurt him, nor separate him from those he cares for. Besides," Arthur added. "He'll have a rank soon enough. Did you, perchance, notice his cloak?"

The Duke grinned. "I was wondering about that, but I assumed that the significance of that style and color was forgotten. It's deliberate?"

Arthur nodded. "My wife made it for him a while ago, and I've only recently discovered its meaning. She's very smart."

"He's going to have quite the challenge once you name him Court Sorcerer," the Duke commented.

"He has many friends. And, apparently, a woman."

"My daughter understands adversity as not many do. It's difficult enough to be a druid in this time, but it might be even harder for a lone woman to become successful."

At that moment, Gwaine dragged a loudly protesting Elyan onto the dance floor, and Merlin and Emily joined them to make up a quartet for the next dance. Gwaine obligingly danced the woman's part, making sure to curtsey and bat his lashes at the other knight at opportune moments.

"That's quite good, Sir Gwaine," Emily called over the music. "Most men don't pick up those steps very easily." She actually looked quite impressed.

"I had to learn them to win a bet once," the knight answered with a grin. Arthur didn't even want to know the details. "I consider myself rather skilled."

Despite the increasingly comedic scene, Arthur kept his eyes on Merlin. His friend actually looked content, which was something that he didn't think he'd ever witnessed before. Merlin was usually anxious or bored. Sometimes, he seemed blindingly happy- that had been occurring more often recently. The warlock had even been frightened or sad from time to time. It was always extreme emotion, though. Arthur didn't think his friend had ever seemed as comfortable as he did dancing with the druid woman.

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I swear that they're actually going to be in Camelot next chapter, and interesting things are going to happen. I just had to get their journey back out of the way.

Please review!


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin.

Does the castle have a ballroom? I don't know. For the purposes of this story, it does.

Updates might be coming slightly more slowly now.

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The Duke and Duchess saw everyone off the next morning with pastries for the road. Arthur hoped that they would reach Camelot by mid-afternoon. Emily was riding double with Merlin again- it was still very strange- and everyone was in good spirits after having spent a night safely indoors. Mistress Fleet had taken the opportunity to trade her druid clothing for something a little more befitting a dance instructor the previous night.

"What are you doing, Merlin?" Gwaine called over to his friend in a rather serious voice. The warlock had pulled near the edge of the road to pull a few berries off of bushes.

"Merlin, no!" Arthur barked.

The warlock just rolled his eyes. "Look, I'm checking them for curses," he replied. His eyes flashed gold. "Nothing. They're perfectly safe."

That incident, to Arthur's dismay, wasn't even the most eventful part of their journey.

The knights, Merlin, Gale, and Emily had dismounted along with the king to eat lunch. They weren't expecting an attack so close to the city, so even Arthur took a moment to register what was happening.

More than two dozen bandits had silently surrounded them, and an attack began almost before anyone knew what was happening. Arthur was able to see Gale take a bandits sword and defeat the assailant before he was distracted by those attacking him. Almost immediately, invisible hands began throwing bandits into each other and burning their weapons from their hands. That had to have been Merlin as Mordred had chosen to use a mix of magic and swordplay, distracting his opponents before taking them down.

Then, it was over. The most serious injury was a shallow cut on Percival's hand. "You know," Merlin began as they remounted the horses. "It's much easier protecting you when I don't have to hide behind a tree."

"I would imagine so," Arthur answered. He was finally figuring out how he had been able to defeat so many bandits in the past. Merlin had taken out at least ten of them on his own.

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Gwen looked up from the papers she had been studying when a guard entered the room. "The king has returned," he announced.

The queen jumped up and rushed out of the room, heading straight for the courtyard. She hadn't been expecting anyone back for at least a week. Something was wrong. She skidded to a stop at the front doors, and, only slightly more slowly, made her way outside. Arthur was the first person she saw as he was leading the group of knights into the courtyard on horseback. She sighed in relief. It looked like everyone had made it back with injury. Even Gale.

Gwen took an extra moment to study her brother, then, convincing herself that he was unharmed, turned her gaze to Merlin. She hadn't noticed the blonde woman riding with Merlin at first, and she wondered who the newcomer was. Merlin was saying something to her, but they were too far away for the queen to hear.

Arthur dismounted, and she walked over to greet him. "Why have you come back so early?" she questioned her husband.

He shook his head. "Not here. We'll fill you in once we get inside."

Gwen nodded in acceptance. There were too many others present in the courtyard to pass on information. "Who came back with you?" she asked instead.

The woman had now made her way over, and she gave possibly the most graceful curtsey Gwen had ever seen. "Emily Fleet, at your service, my queen," the woman introduced herself.

Gwen was momentarily speechless. "I am delighted to have you," she finally managed before turning to the warlock who had come over as well. "Merlin, you told me she had refused to come," the queen scolded.

"I had," Mistress Fleet said.

"This is part of what we're going to tell you later," Arthur added. Gwen raised an eyebrow. Arthur really couldn't leave the castle without something interesting happening. Sometimes, he didn't even need to leave. "There's going to be a round table meeting in an hour. Merlin, bring your girlfriend."

Gwen glanced sharply at the warlock at that last word, but he had already hurried inside after Arthur along with the woman.

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An hour later found Gwaine entering the chamber where the round table meetings were held. He noticed the queen was already there, scolding Merlin about something while Emily looked on and laughed. Poor Merlin was never going to be forgiven for having a secret relationship. Gwaine wasn't actually sure that he quite believed it yet, himself.

Everyone else slowly trailed in, and the meeting began with a recounting of their past few days for the sake of the queen. He was grateful that no one actually paused to discuss their worst fears from the nightmares.

"You're certain that Morgana cannot attack yet?" the queen asked once they were done.

Merlin nodded. "If she needed to ask the druids for help, then she can't have a very large fighting force of mages yet. It's going to take time for her to put them together and more to get them all here," the warlock explained. "We'll notice that many people coming from the north."

"They couldn't use a transportation spell?" Mordred asked suddenly.

Merlin shook his head. "It takes a large portion of your energy for you to transport only yourself, and you're a very powerful mage. She might be able to recruit a few people with enough power, but I doubt the majority are able."

"We should-" Gwen began just as Merlin and Mordred both gasped.

They stared at each other for enough time that Gwen could tell they were speaking silently. "What happened?" Arthur finally asked.

Merlin shook his head. "Nothing good. Someone's messing with magic."

"Several someones," Mordred agreed. "Whatever just happened felt very wrong."

"Can we do anything about it right now?" the king asked. Both mages shook their heads. "Then, Guinevere, I suggest you go introduce Mistress Fleet to the court while Merlin and Mordred try to work out what's going on."

"Oh, Sire," Emily said, turning back just before she left with the queen. "I'm holding my first lesson tomorrow morning, and I fully expect you to set a good example by showing up with your wife."

Arthur groaned, but the two women were already gone.

"Look on the bright side," Merlin laughed. "You won't make as much of a fool of yourself as Lord Oro." The warlock ran after the dancer, remembering that Gaius still had to meet her.

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Gaius and Emma had gotten on very well, Merlin remembered as he headed to the ballroom the next morning. She was quite the likeable person when she wanted to be, and she knew enough about healing from the druids to be able to hold a conversation with the court physician.

Upon reaching the ballroom, Merlin looked inside to see that there were about twenty nobles already present with various servants stationed on the outskirts of the room. As Gale had mostly taken over the role of manservant to the king, he was also present. Merlin- he wasn't actually sure what his job description was at the moment- had decided to watch Emma give a dance lesson. He had seen her try to teach a few druids and had been taught himself, but he was curious to see her teach the nobles.

Arthur waved him over to the other side of the room, so Merlin joined the king along with Gwen and Emma. The queen looked incredibly excited.

"I was just telling Guinevere that we're going to be going over some of the basics today," Emma informed Merlin. She was grinning mischievously, and Merlin knew her well enough to guess what that meant.

"So, who's your unfortunate partner going to be?" the warlock asked with trepidation.

"Everyone," Arthur called. The room immediately quieted. "We are quite fortune that Mistress Fleet has come to our city. For the next few hours, I will not be in charge, she will be." Merlin had to hide a grin when he noticed that Arthur didn't look quite so enthusiastic about that.

"Thank you," Emma told Arthur before addressing the gathered nobles. There were a few more women than men, but about 40% of those present were men. "The king has been kind enough to loan me Merlin for demonstration purposes." Merlin groaned, and Gwen elbowed him. The nobles seemed faintly amused- they were probably remembering how clumsy Merlin could be.

As Emma began to make sure that everyone knew the steps to the first dance, though, Merlin found that he was keeping up rather well. The steps were fairly simple, and Emma had drilled them into his head before.

Gwen was having a great time along with the king, and Merlin realized that she and Arthur often didn't get to spend their free time together. Overall, Emma's first lesson at the castle went very well, and she agreed to dine with the king and queen afterwards. Merlin and Gale were just about to leave the ballroom when a messenger showed up to retrieve Merlin. It seemed that Gaius had a patient that he needed help with.

Leaving Gale with an apology and Emma with a grin, Merlin headed to the court physician's chambers. He immediately spotted Gaius looking over an unconscious man in concern.

"What happened?" Merlin asked.

"I'm not certain," Gaius replied. "John's a farmer just outside of the city. One of the patrols brought him in a few minutes ago."

"He's been unconscious the whole time?"

Gaius nodded, and Merlin studied that man in more detail. John wasn't very old actually. Older than Merlin, certainly, but not nearly as old as the warlock's mentor. He wouldn't have collapsed without reason. He appeared to be in pain, though nothing was outwardly wrong with him. It was then that Merlin realized why Gaius had summoned him. The warlock reached out with his senses to examine the unfortunate farmer then jumped back in shock.

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Leon passed Merlin in the hallway as he made his way to the throne room. A servant had just summoned him and the other knights. Apparently, someone had a gift to present to the king. The queen was going to be quite angry that her dance lesson was interrupted.

Leon led the knights into the throne room where the king, queen, everyone who had been dancing, and a large portion of the council were already present. A stranger in a well-made brown cloak stood before the king. As Leon took his place, he could see that a bundle rested in the stranger's hands.

"Your Majesties," the man began in a raspy voice. "It is my great honor to bestow a gift upon your city. This item has recently come into my possession, and I believe that it will be a great asset to you."

"Who are you?" Arthur asked rather bluntly. "I would like to know just who is giving me such a gift."

The man bowed slightly. "You may call me Bert, Sire." He continued before the king could ask more questions. Leon noted that Mordred was frowning. "I've recently inherited this artifact, and it should aid you in rooting out those who would betray you."

"How would such a thing work?" Arthur was looking incredibly suspicious, as were many in the room. The queen had actually taken a step back.

"Let's test it, shall we?" the man said with glee. Leon could sense something was off, but the man pulled the cloth away from what he was holding before anyone could move.

Mordred's armor made a loud clang as he dropped to the stone floor.

* * *

Ooooh! Cliffhanger!

Please review!


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin.

So, I think we're nearing the end of the story. Maybe like 5 more chapters? Obviously they still have to deal with Morgana and legalize magic, but that's about as far as this story is going to go. I might write a prequel about the actual reveal to Arthur, and I'm considering a Gwaine story.

Merlin's magic might be revealed to Morgana in later chapters, so keep reading!

* * *

 _Mordred's armor made a loud clang as he dropped to the stone floor._

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Merlin gasped as Mordred's mental scream tore through him. Even Gaius was looking around as if he had heard something. As he sent his magic outward, Merlin realized that the source of the unease he and Mordred had been feeling earlier was right in the castle. A chill ran down his spine.

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Leon knelt down next to Mordred as the younger knight was clutching his head in obvious pain. He seemed completely unaware of what was going on around him.

"What have you done!" the king demanded. The stranger had revealed a large grey object in his hands. Metal or stone, Leon couldn't tell. "Guards!"

"I've merely exposed a traitor in Camelot, Sire," the man protested in his raspy voice. Leon was really beginning to hate the sound of it. Two guards had seized the man by the time he was done speaking, and several more stood ready to intervene. "You see, this artifact causes great pain to any who possess magic. It corrupts the magic that they draw on and replaces it with something harmful."

Leon saw Arthur's eyes tighten, and the senior knight was surprised to find that he felt the same way. Weeks ago, he would've been grateful for that artifact, but now he could only feel anger. If he hadn't already been kneeling next to Mordred, Leon probably would have stepped forward to escort the man to the dungeons.

It was then that the knight saw Emily very intently studying the artifact. Leon had almost forgotten she was present. "Cover it up," she suddenly commanded into the silence of the room before the king had a chance to speak.

To Arthur's credit, he didn't even ask for a reason. The king simply walked up to the man, took the object, and flipped the cloth back over it. The anger on his face was extremely evident now. Mordred finally collapsed, unconscious.

"What gives you the right to attack one of my knights?" Arthur spat at the man.

"He's a mage, Sire, a traitor. I've done you a favor!" the man protested.

"Take him to the dungeons, and make sure to keep an eye on him," the king commanded the guards as they dragged the man from the room. It said a great deal about how well-liked Mordred was that the guards didn't even hesitate.

Merlin and Gaius rushed in a moment later, both looking extremely concerned.

"Gaius, have some of the knights help you with Mordred," Arthur commanded.

"What happened, Sire?" Gaius asked as he made his way over to the unconscious knight. Leon moved aside for the physician.

"A man who called himself Bert uncovered this artifact, and Mordred collapsed." Arthur held up the cloth-wrapped object in his hands.

"I have a patient in a similar condition. He was just brought in from outside of the city. If you would hand the artifact to Emily, Sire, I will study it in my rooms." Arthur handed the stone to the dancer with a grateful expression on his face.

For the first time, Leon looked at the other faces around the room. Many of the nobles wore expressions of shock. "Should he not be taken to the dungeons?" Duke Wells demanded. Leon remembered that he had been one of Uther's strongest supporters during the purge. The knight had never much cared for the man.

"I would like to remind you," Arthur growled, "that this man is a loyal knight of Camelot. He needs medical attention, and he shall have it. Mordred is no traitor. Do not forget yourself by taking the words of a stranger over those of your king."

"Surely an investigation is warranted." Leon clenched his fists and noticed that Elyan had actually reached out to restrain Gwaine.

Leon could tell that the matter wasn't going to be allowed to drop, and it seemed that the king knew it too. "Very well. I would like to call a meeting of the council in four hours' time." Arthur didn't give anyone a chance to respond as he and Gwen promptly turned and exited the throne room. Many looked surprised at this behavior, but none dared to speak out against the king when he was angry.

Deciding to think about it later, Leon helped Percival to carry Mordred to the physician's chambers. It was only once they arrived that the knight realized Merlin had been uncharacteristically quiet. Emily placed the wrapped artifact on the table, and Mordred was laid out on a pallet on the floor next to the other victim. The room was somewhat crowded with four knights and Emily in addition to its usual occupants.

"They're the same," Merlin finally stated.

"What do you mean?" Gaius asked. The statement had come out of nowhere.

"Their magic's corrupted." Merlin frowned as he knelt next to Mordred and reached out to touch him.

"Stop!" Gaius commanded. Leon jumped, and Merlin flinched back and looked at his mentor questioningly. "What if it gets to you as well?"

Merlin gave him an odd look. "You don't know what that is?" He pointed at the bundle on the table.

Gaius shook his head. "Do you?"

"I can feel it from here. It's supposed to cut off magic, right?" Gaius just looked at him in confusion. "Even wrapped up, that thing's interrupting the flow of magic around it. I can almost see the magic fleeing from it. It's really creepy, and I really don't want to touch it. It doesn't seem to be working right now, though. Whatever was done to Mordred is stationary."

"What do you mean?"

"It isn't reacting to anything. Even the magic flowing around Mordred is untouched. Most curses draw on magic, and that's how they spread."

Gaius threw up his hands. "Just remember that if your theory isn't correct, it's going to be up to me and Emily to save you." For the first time, Leon began to understand why Merlin was so different from other mages. Even Gaius's years of knowledge couldn't compete with his ward's natural talent.

Merlin rolled his eyes and laid a hand on Mordred's forehead. "I wasn't sure before, but Morgana's behind this," he finally said. "Her magic's all tied up in this spell. I don't understand why, though. She's going to put another plan into motion soon."

"That's her plan!" Emily exclaimed. "She isn't gathering mages for an army. That didn't make a lot of sense anyway. She's going to send them in one by one to destroy Camelot."

"And Morgana doesn't know that Arthur's views have changed," Merlin continued, realization settling into his expression. "She was probably hoping to discredit Mordred, or even discover me."

Leon frowned as he looked between the two. "Can you explain what's going on?" he asked.

"I'm glad somebody asked!" Gwaine cheered. "I don't think any of us understood that."

Merlin laughed slightly and took a seat at the workbench. "Emma had told us that Morgana was looking to gather mages for an attack on Camelot. We all assumed she was going to try to build an army entirely out of magic users, and that it was going to take time. It seemed ambitious enough to suit her style." The warlock paused to gesture to the two victims of the cursed artifact. "We failed to consider something else, though. Morgana deals in secrets and lies. She spent at least a year here actively plotting against Uther."

Leon's eyes widened. "It makes a great deal more sense that she would try to tear Camelot apart at the seams," he finished for Merlin. He felt his pulse quicken. "Her mages could be anywhere, doing anything right now."

Gale burst into the room just then. "The king's calling a round table meeting in half an hour," he announced. Leon nodded, he had been expecting it. Arthur was going to have to come up with a way to deal with the council. "How's Mordred?"

"We're working on it," Merlin told him as he jumped up. "What's that cloth made of?"

"It appears to be a thick linen," Gaius answered as he carefully prodded the material. "I think light is the answer you're looking for." Leon frowned as the conversation once again stopped making sense.

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"Can I reverse the effects?" Merlin asked. He noticed that the knights were looking confused, but decided to ignore it for the moment.

"Typically curses need counter curses," Gaius answered.

"I'm not certain this is a typical curse," Emma spoke up. "The man's eyes never changed color. It seemed like the artifact was drawing energy from the light it was exposed to."

"Can something like that be reversed?"

Emma nodded. "My people use that idea all the time. We actually transport out camps with similar spells. If we set fire to some of our tents, they shrink or become incredibly light. All we have to do to reverse the effect is to pour water on them."

"I can't exactly pour darkness onto this, though," Merlin protested. He rubbed his arms as the creepy feeling from the stone persisted.

"But you can draw light out of it."

Merlin cocked his head to the side, and he noted that most of the knights were staring blankly. "Can you explain that?"

Emma grinned. "You've channeled Mordred's power before, right?" Merlin nodded. "So, assume that light is the artifact's power. Channel that."

Not for the first time, Merlin was grateful for Emma's presence. "That actually makes sense."

"Did you doubt me?"

"Never," Merlin declared, jumping up and walking over to the wrapped artifact. He held his hands out over it and reached for the magic that he could feel in it. He wanted to step back, but he held himself in place. Merlin experimentally tugged on the strange magic, and he was pleased to find it respond. He drew it out of the artifact, careful to keep as much of his own magic as separate as he could. A large ball of light began to hover above the artifact as Merlin continued to tug. All at once, he felt the magic run out, and the light exploded into hundreds of sparks. Everyone in the room ducked and threw up their arms, but the light didn't hurt anyone. When he looked back down at the bundle on the table, nothing was left except for the cloth.

Mordred groaned, and Merlin spun around to inspect the mage. His magic was back to normal, and Merlin sighed in relief before grinning. "How do you feel?" he asked.

Mordred sat up. "Not that bad, actually. What happened?"

"Define not bad," Gaius interjected.

"Tired and hungry, like I've just come back from a patrol."

Gwaine walked over and offered the mage a hand up. "Feel up to a round table meeting?" the knight asked.

Mordred nodded while Gaius frowned in disapproval. Merlin noticed that he didn't even try to stop him, though. "You too, Emma," Merlin added. "We should probably get going."

The other victim of the curse began stirring at that moment. "He was under it for longer, so he might take a while to recover," Gaius announced. "He doesn't need you all hovering over him." Merlin took that as a dismissal, so he offered Emma his arm and left with the other knights and Gale.

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Gwen listened as the attack on Mordred was explained at the Round Table meeting, and she cringed when it was revealed that Morgana was behind it.

"What's the next attack going to be?" Arthur asked Merlin who was seated in his usual place to the king's right. Gwen grinned as she noticed that Merlin had thrown his cloak on. Very little was going to change when he actually became Court Sorcerer.

Merlin shook his head. "I'm not sure, but I can almost guarantee you that it's going to be based on Camelot's fear of sorcery. Morgana, in all likelihood, won't have heard that Bert's attack failed before sending another mage."

"I need to legalize magic yesterday," Arthur groaned.

"That would throw off her plans," Merlin agreed, and Gwen saw the truth in that.

"She would also lose a lot of support from magic users," the queen added. "To my understanding, most are just angry about Camelot's stance on magic."

"Can you bring that up to the council today?" Elyan asked. "Just like that?"

"Considering that fact that we aren't killing Mordred," Merlin answered, "I think he's going to have to.

"My father actually arrived this morning," Emma mentioned. "He was going to wait to announce himself until this afternoon. You have his support in addition to a few others. I've also given him permission to reveal my true parentage whenever he deems it reasonable."

Gwen rested her hand on her husband's arm as he sighed. "How do I even begin to bring up the fact that I'm completely reversing what my father fought for?"

"They're probably going to do that for you," Gwaine commented. "The only thing on their minds right now is what you're going to do about the mage masquerading as a knight. No offence, Mordred."

"None taken," Mordred responded. Gwen grinned at the knights' banter. It had been missing from Camelot for a while.

"Anyway," Gwaine continued. "I can guarantee you that one of those idiots is going to be hollering for his death before you can even get a word in. All you have to do is tell them you won't be killing him because that would be a really stupid idea."

Arthur laughed, though Gwen thought it sounded a little hysterical. "I might phrase that a little differently."

"And that would be why you're the princess, and I'm a knight."

"They're probably going to ask for some kind of proof," Leon added. "You can't just change your views without reason."

"Is Mordred not proof enough?" Arthur asked.

Gwen shook her head and sighed. She loved being queen, but situations like this made her sorely miss her days as a seamstress and maid. "He hasn't been here for very long," she explained. "They'll think he's just biding his time."

"What about me?" Merlin asked. "Would anyone wait a decade before trying to destroy Camelot?" Gwen could see that he looked nervous. "Tell them about me. If it's enough to convince them, then it may just save Camelot."

* * *

Get ready for shocked council members!

Please review!


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin.

Still a few chapters left in this story. Here's the council meeting. They still have to battle Morgana at some point and officially legalize magic, but the story is going to begin to wrap up at some point within the next few chapters.

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 _"What about me?" Merlin asked. "Would anyone wait a decade before trying to destroy Camelot?" Gwen could see that he looked nervous. "Tell the council about me. If it's enough to convince them, then it may just save Camelot."_

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Merlin nervously took his place at the side of the council chamber. Although there wasn't a round table, Arthur had rearranged the long tables into something more or less resembling an octagon a few years ago. It had been extremely entertaining to watch the council members' reactions the first time they saw the new configuration. That shock was going to be nothing compared to what they were in for today, though. The warlock was glad for Emma's and Mordred's presence at his sides. The three of them weren't usually allowed into the council meetings- though Arthur sometimes dragged Merlin along- so they didn't have seats.

Arthur was already seated as the council members wandered in. They cast suspicious glances at Mordred, especially Duke Wells, though they were probably also wondering why Emma was present. Merlin relaxed slightly when the Duke of Woodland walked in. He smiled at his daughter before taking his seat.

"Duke Woodland," Arthur greeted. "Welcome back to court. I trust your travels were safe?"

Emma's father nodded. "Thank you, Sire. We had no troubles on the road."

Arthur was silent for a moment, and Merlin couldn't read his expression as the king's back was to his guests. The warlock let his gaze roam over the council, and he thought he could pick out their allies in magic. None of them had the nasty expression that was sending chills up his spine. Merlin desperately wanted to take Emma's hand, but he didn't dare draw any more attention to them at the moment.

"I see that he has recovered," Earl Tinvale broke the silence and gestured to Mordred. What the nasty Earl didn't say was, 'I see you've chosen not to lock him up.'

"You are assuming that Bert was speaking the truth," Arthur responded calmly. "We know nothing of this man other than that he attempted to discredit one of my most loyal knights."

"An interrogation is in order, at least," Duke Wells commanded.

"Of Bert, certainly," Arthur replied. Merlin fought to hide a smile as a few of the council grimaced. The king sighed. "Before today, who here believed that Mordred was a threat to Camelot?"

No one spoke up, and Merlin felt Mordred relax slightly.

"My knight is not a traitor based solely on the word of a stranger," Arthur continued.

"He was affected by that magical artifact," Wells pointed out.

"And that makes him evil?" Woodland questioned. A few gasps were heard around the chamber. Merlin remembered it was the first time that Woodland would be indicating he supported magic.

"Magic is evil, of course," Wells announced.

"What proof have you?" Woodland argued.

"Do you dare to suggest that we commit treason in front of the king?"

Merlin could practically see the annoyed expression on the king's face. "Speak your piece, Woodland, I am not my father," Arthur commanded.

"We are at piece with the druids, and they have not done a single thing in retaliation against our previous transgressions. Even if Mordred does possess magic, he's a loyal knight of Camelot. Why investigate someone we trust?"

"Sire," Tinvale cut in. "This is not the Woodland I know. We've had imposters in the past."

Merlin saw Duke Woodland roll his eyes. "I can answer any question you pose to me, Tinvale. I am who I say I am."

"However, your beliefs are not ones that the true Woodland has."

"I have every right to change what I believe when I realize that it's wrong," Woodland spat.

"That was clearly a treasonous speech, Sire."

"I will not kill a man for voicing his opinion," Arthur replied with a note of anger in his voice. "Perhaps the Duke has good reason for his thoughts. I will take his word on the matter."

Merlin saw that Arthur was trying not to stir the conversation in the direction of Emma, but it seemed inevitable that it would go that way.

The Duke of Woodland cut off any other protest when he spoke once again. "I have good reason to trust that the druids are not evil. Therefore, I cannot believe that magic is also inherently evil." Emma stepped forward, and many of the council members looked at her in surprise. "I think you all remember that my daughter was stolen away at birth. What you don't know is that she was abandoned then cared for by the druids. Gentlemen, allow me to introduce Lady Emily Woodland."

Emma swept into a low curtsey before Arthur. "I would like to formally announce my presence at court, Sire," she spoke gracefully.

"You are most welcome in my court, Lady Emily," Arthur immediately replied, as if it wasn't a surprise- which it wasn't.

Emma quickly retreated to her previous position next to Merlin, and the warlock noticed most of the council were whispering among themselves. "I do believe that this explains Woodland's change of heart," Arthur said. "We can spend time verifying her bloodlines and lack of magic at a later time, though."

Tinvale and Wells still didn't seem pleased. "One man being grateful for his daughter's safe return does not prove that magic isn't evil," the latter protested.

"Does it not?" the king asked. Many of the council's eyes widened. It seemed that most of them believed him to be merely tolerating Woodland. "I had hoped to bring this up at a better time. For the past few months, I have been seriously reevaluating my stance on magic."

The silence that followed was unnerving. A few of the council members looked as if they were going to pass out, explode, or both. Arthur let his statement sink in for a few moments. "My father was a great king, but he was blinded by hatred, and he unfairly executed thousands of innocents. That ends now."

"Sire?" Tinvale asked in shock.

"The first thing that I would like to propose to the council is that we not execute Mordred for sorcery."

"You just claimed that Bert's accusations were unfounded!" Wells protested.

"He claimed that Mordred was a traitor. I said that he was a loyal knight." Merlin had to hide a grin once again.

"Sire, I must protest," another council member spoke up. Merlin couldn't remember the spindly man's name. "Mordred has been with us for less than a year. Morgana was able to fool us for far longer than that. The sorcerer is probably just biding his time."

"To do what, Lord Cane?" Arthur asked. He sounded amused, thought Merlin caught the tension in his voice. "If he's trying to kill me, he's doing a terrible job of it. He's saved my life at least five times that I can immediately think of."

"Who knows how they think, Sire? Perhaps he's helping Morgana entrench herself in Camelot."

"So that's why he stabbed her?" Arthur replied sarcastically. "Allies do that to each other, right?"

"It simply isn't enough proof, Sire," Wells announced.

"Then let me try another example," Arthur growled. He took a breath and spoke more calmly. "Who here knows Merlin?" Everyone raised their hands. "Who here trusts Merlin or likes him?" Everyone but Tinvale kept their hands up. Merlin hadn't ever really like the Earl either. "Who here thinks Merlin is anything but completely loyal to me?" Every hand went down. Tinvale's didn't even go back up. "Who isn't aware that Merlin has saved my life on multiple occasions?" The hands stayed down. "Who here thinks that a decade is an awfully long time to spend plotting against someone?" Every hand went up.

Arthur paused before continuing. "I would like everyone to think about those answers for a moment."

Merlin stepped forward to stand just behind the king's chair. He had to resist pulling the hood of his cloak up over his head. "Who here knows that I was born with magic?" the warlock asked. The answering silence was deafening as the council tried to absorb that statement. Everyone began shouting at once as realization set in.

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Merlin was still shaking slightly an hour later as he and Emma followed Gwen down a little-used hallway. The council had spent the rest of the time arguing heatedly- mostly about where to build the pyre. All Arthur had been able to do was order Merlin and Mordred not to be touched. The king finally gave up and called a halt to the meeting. Another council meeting would take place the following morning.

Gwen had found him shortly afterwards and ordered him to come with her. Emma was invited along as well, though Mordred said he needed to be alone for a while. "Where are we?" Emma asked finally. She was holding Merlin's hand. It might have been the only thing keeping him from panicking.

"I have a surprise for Merlin," Gwen explained. "We didn't dare share it before now."

"I've never even been here," Merlin commented. His curiosity was overriding everything else.

"Do you know what your cloak means, Merlin?" the queen asked.

"That you're a wonderful friend," he asked with a grin.

"Besides that?" Merlin shook his head. "It's the cloak of the Court Sorcerer of Camelot."

"Excuse me?" Merlin nearly tripped in his shock.

"Arthur didn't know what it was for a while," Gwen continued. "He approved once he figured out that I had done it deliberately, though." They stopped in front of a large wooden door at the end of the hall. "This tower was barred when the Purge began."

Merlin was barely processing what was going on as he took a better look at his cloak. It didn't seem that special. Gwen unlocked the door with a key she handed to him. "These rooms are now yours."

"As is the title that goes along with them," Arthur said from behind them. Merlin spun around in surprise. The king could be very quiet at times. "Once the council gets over themselves, of course."

Merlin actually couldn't get his mouth to work, so he just nodded and ventured through the doorway. Inside was a spacious, but comfortable chamber. As it was part of a tower, the room was rounded at the edges. A sturdy round table sat to one side, though its chairs were scattered around the place. Dust was everywhere.

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"We would have cleaned it, but we didn't want anyone to remember that this place existed," Gwen explained. "There are three more floors," she gently prodded when Merlin still didn't respond.

The warlock walked forward in a daze to the staircase and began to climb with Emma following behind. Gwen looked over at her husband who seemed bemused. "Had I known this would happen ten years ago, I wouldn't have believed it," he said as the other couple disappeared upstairs. They would be finding a large library on the second-floor room that had only been half-destroyed. "My terrible servant is now the Court Sorcerer, and I'm actively campaigning not to kill him for it."

"This is everything Merlin deserves." Gwen couldn't stop grinning for her friend.

"It really is," Arthur agreed.

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So, the council will be in the next chapter again.

Please review!


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin.

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Merlin could barely believe the library that took up the second floor of the tower. Half of it was torn apart, and pages were scattered everywhere, but so many books were still intact! He quickly scanned over some of the spines. So many of those books would have been helpful in previous years.

"These are druid histories, Merlin!" Emma exclaimed from across the room. He walked over to where she was holding a relatively intact book.

Merlin was still just taking in the room. Eventually, he headed up to the next floor. It actually resembled Gauis's workroom, though the windows were quite a bit larger. Jars had been flung from their shelves, and quite a few unidentifiable objects lay in shards across the floor, but that could all be fixed. He was still looking around in wonder when Emma wrapped her arms around him.

It was a lot to take in. One moment, the warlock was helping to save Mordred, and the next the council was debating how best to put him to death. Now, here he was, in a set of rooms given to him specifically so that he could practice magic within.

"Is this everything you hoped for, minus the dust, of course?" the druid asked.

Merlin pulled back to look at her. "More. So much more." He leaned forward to kiss her only to stop as Arthur entered the room. Emma blushed as she stepped away, and Arthur had an odd look on his face. Gwen was grinning widely. "What?" Merlin asked as innocently as he could.

Arthur just shook his head. "It's so weird to see you in a relationship," he explained. "You're Merlin. You don't fall in love with women!"

Gwen smacked his arm, but Merlin just laughed. "At least I've fallen in love with a woman I can actually be with," the warlock replied as he looked pointedly at Gwen.

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Arthur blinked. Merlin had more or less just admitted to loving Emily, and the druid didn't seem particularly surprised about it. The warlock was usually so closed off from everyone around him. "Gaius is going to be so jealous!" the warlock continued in a delighted tone. "Though he might just be happy to have me out of his hair."

"He'll be sad to see you go," Gwen protested, and Arthur had to agree with that. Gaius really did love his ward. The queen led the way up to the fourth level of the tower, though it was probably about eight stories in the air. Arthur stopped in surprise as the room came into view. It appeared not to even have been touched. Only a thick layer of dust suggested that the room had been out of use.

The king watched as Merlin approached the bed to prod at one of the charms dangling from the end. "Gaius said that the last Court Sorcerer was a bit eccentric," Gwen explained. "He guessed there would be a lot of paranoid protective charms around."

Merlin nodded. "I think that's what these used to be. There isn't any magic left in them, though." He took a closer look around. "Actually, most of the residual magic in here seems to be concentrated in the workroom." Merlin walked over to a trunk tucked away in a corner. "This is the only thing remotely magical in here, and I think I'm going to put it in the workroom until I can sort through it. Then I'm probably going to put as many wards on that room as possible before something dangerous decides to wreak havoc."

"Is that likely?" Arthur asked. He really didn't need any other magical worries in addition to Morgana.

Merlin shook his head as he levitated the trunk down the stairs. "I've learned my lesson. I'm going to make sure something is safe before I decide to open it up."

Arthur followed Merlin, Gwen, and Emma down to the tower's third level where he carefully lowered the trunk onto the floor. His eyes flashed gold several more times as he warded the room heavily.

"Have fun sorting through that mess with Mordred," Emily said cheerfully. Merlin grimaced, and it took Arthur a minute to realize that the knight was probably the only person in Camelot besides Merlin who would be able to safely examine the magical items. "I'm dining with my father tonight," she said suddenly as she looked out a window. "I'll see you tomorrow, Merlin."

Arthur watched as she kissed the warlock on the cheek and sprinted off. Merlin just laughed, and Gwen followed after her. "I'm going to send Gale over to help you clean up the bedroom a bit, at the very least," the king told his friend. "You might want to consider sleeping here tonight. Less people will be able to get in here." He really didn't think that anyone would dare try to hurt Merlin, but they hadn't exactly impressed upon anyone just how powerful the warlock was. "Actually, Mordred should probably spend the knight here as well."

"He's not in the city right now," Merlin explained. "Sometimes he spends the night out in the forest." The two had made their way to the first level where the small round table sat. It only had eight seats squeezed around it, just like the very first one they had sat at in the ruined fortress. A quick spell removed the dust, and Merlin took a seat at the table. Arthur followed suit, and he smiled at how much the warlock had relaxed. He seemed quite comfortable in the tower, though he was staring quite fixedly at the table.

"Stop worrying, Merlin. Everything will work out."

Merlin's head snapped up as if startled. "I know. I was just looking at this table. It's a _real_ round table."

Arthur laughed. "The one downstairs isn't round enough for you?"

Merlin rolled his eyes. "No, you prat, round tables traditionally have a bit more to them." The warlock placed both hands flat on the table and concentrated. His eyes flared a bright gold before fading. The stone table took on a glow of its own though. Arthur leaned back slightly as glimmers of gold snaked across its surface. "The spells were already in place on this one. It just needed some power."

Arthur was becoming concerned as the golden threads raced to his side of the table, but they stopped just in front of him to form a symbol the he didn't recognize. Another formed in front of Merlin while the remaining places simply had shining circles in front of them. The glow faded slightly once the shapes had settled, and it almost looked as if the table had been inlayed with the precious metal.

"The table assigns seats," Merlin explained. "As soon as another person enters the room, one of the circles should become a symbol that they can identify with."

"What does mine say?" Arthur thought it looked like arbitrary scribbles, but Merlin seemed to understand.

"It means 'leader.' That's the symbol that should show up for you most of the time, I suppose."

"You suppose?"

"I haven't been allowed to study magic! It's a miracle I know anything at all about this."

"What does yours say?"

"Dragon." Merlin grinned.

"I'm the king of Camelot, and you get the dragon?"

"I _am_ a dragon lord."

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"Please!" Merlin begged Arthur half-heartedly the next morning. They were heading to the council chamber. "The spell isn't round table specific. It'll work on an octagon."

Arthur was sincerely trying to keep a stern expression on his face, but the image of the council members screaming in terror as strange symbols ran over the tables in front of them was too much. "Merlin, we don't want to scare them away!" he protested.

" _You_ don't," Merlin grumbled.

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Perhaps he should have let Merlin cast spells during the meeting, Arthur thought to himself an hour later. Absolutely nothing had been accomplished. The entire time had been taken up by most of the council calling for Merlin and Mordred's deaths. Duke Woodland and a few others had been speaking in favor of magic, but their voices only helped so much.

The king was almost relieved when the doors to the council chamber slammed open and a cloaked figure strode in. Before anyone could react, the figure had used magic to send a dagger flying straight at Arthur's head. The king watched as the blade froze inches from his head then dropped to the table. Merlin stepped forward to knock the stranger unconscious. It was all over in the space of a few seconds.

Duke Wells seemed torn between hatred of magic and relief that the king had been saved. It was twisting his face into all sorts of interesting shapes. No one said a word, though several guards rushed in moments later. Arthur instructed that the unconscious assailant be brought to the dungeons and rescheduled the council meeting for the following day.

He then took Merlin, Mordred, and Emily to meet with the round table.

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Gwaine paused when he entered the round table chamber. Everyone else was already present, though Merlin was the only one seated at the table. He was chanting bizarre words, and both his eyes and the table were glowing gold. Then, it was over, and only what appeared to be a golden inlay adorned the table. Arthur promptly sat to Merlin's left, though the others hesitated.

"I'm betting that you're grace, Emma," Merlin said as he looked at the druid woman. How that boy was so lucky in love, Gwaine would never know. She sat next to the warlock.

"Is there a seating chart now?" Gwaine asked.

The princess rolled his eyes. "Merlin enchanted the table to choose our seats, apparently."

"Leon's here," Mordred announced as he examined the rune to the king's left. "This one means loyalty."

"Friend?" Merlin asked as Mordred moved to the next one. "That's you Gwaine." The knight shrugged and moved to take his seat. Friend wasn't the worst thing it could've said.

"Elyan," Mordred announced next. "This one says sword." He looked at the next seat. "Magic?"

"Mine says dragon," Merlin explained. "That's your seat." Now Gwaine was feeling a bit put out about 'friend.' Dragon was so much cooler.

"You're next to me, Percival," Mordred continued. "It's the symbol for strength."

Only one remained once the strong knight sat down. "Innocence," Merlin read. Gale was the only other person in the room, and, being the youngest, was probably the most innocent.

"Take a seat, Gale," Arthur invited. The servant looked quite pleased to be at the table.

"I've been wanting to try out that spell for a while," Merlin confessed.

Arthur nodded. It was a particularly exciting spell. "Maybe I should have let you use that in the council chamber."

Gwaine thought about that for a minute before laughing out loud. "The meeting would've lasted five seconds," he chuckled.

"If only," Merlin groaned. "Is that stranger secure?" he asked, referring to the knife thrower.

Leon nodded. "We've locked him up. He won't be going anywhere once he wakes up."

Merlin just laughed, though Gwaine felt like he was missing something. "He might be, actually. Camelot's security is just plain awful."

Leon looked affronted. "Camelot has some of the best security in the surrounding kingdoms."

"Believe me, I know."

"No one gets in or out of the castle if I don't want them to," Leon protested.

Mordred laughed as well that time. "I can assure you, from personal experience, that isn't true," the druid agreed with Merlin. Gwaine was going to have to ask about that later.

"Arthur," Merlin began. "I think Leon and I need to escape from the dungeons tonight. Can we set that up?"

The king nodded. He seemed amused. "I like this idea. I'm going to take it one step further, though. You two need to get outside the city walls. We'll have the drill bell set up and everything."

Gwaine grinned. The drill bell was used in place of the warning bell to assist in drills that the guards went through from time to time. When that bell was heard, everyone on duty was to act as if it was the warning bell, though the citizens of Camelot knew not to be alarmed.

"Leon," Arthur continued. "When we're done here, inform the guards that you and Merlin are now prisoners, and lock yourselves in the dungeons."

* * *

Camelot's security really is awful. The next chapter will involve Merlin showing Leon just how handy magic can be in escaping the city.

Please review!


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin.

So, it's looking like there are going to be four-ish more chapters. There aren't any more major twists. They just have to deal with Morgana and the council, and wrap up some plot points.

Emma will be in the next chapter. She and Gwen just didn't have anything to contribute to this one.

* * *

"Comfortable?" the king asked as he made his way through the dungeons. Leon had been sitting in the cell with Merlin for about an hour so far. The sun was just beginning to set outside of their small window.

Merlin laughed. "Actually, Gale and a few other servants were working on cleaning the tower tonight, so I'm quite comfortable where I'm at. We won't be here for long anyway," he replied cheerfully. Leon didn't quite believe that they were going to make it out of the dungeons, much less the city, but he decided to remain quiet on the subject for the time being.

"So, to make this most effective, you two are going to pretend that you don't know the castle's layout very well. Any secret escape routes or hidden passageways are off-limits." Leon thought that made sense, though he now lowered their chances of escape from slim to none.

Merlin just nodded. "We're still going to escape."

The king grinned. "I half wondered whether you two would already be gone."

"It's broad daylight!" Leon exclaimed. "We'd have to work mag-" He paused when he realized what he was about to say. Merlin just raised his eyebrows. "Point taken."

Arthur left afterwards- probably to ensure that Gwaine didn't interfere in their escape- and Leon was left alone with Merlin. "You're quite convinced we can pull this off," the knight observed.

Merlin nodded emphatically. "I am. It isn't going to be very difficult."

Leon sighed. "I'm not going to be very happy when the night is over, am I?"

Merlin laughed. "You're going to have a lot of work ahead of you."

A few hours later, they were still waiting in the cell. It had grown dark, and the guards had just changed their six hour shifts. Leon took the time to study the warlock sitting across from him. There was definitely a confidence about Merlin that hadn't been there before. He was still Merlin, but he tended to be more outspoken. However, the warlock had never really had a problem with speaking out against the king. Maybe Merlin's confidence stemmed from the fact that he now knew people would listen.

"Do you have a plan?" the senior knight finally asked.

Merlin nodded. "You'll learn as we go along. It won't be long now."

After another ten minutes had passed, Merlin's eyes shone gold, and the door swung open silently. Leon was so unprepared that it took him a minute to scramble to his feet. "So," the warlock whispered. "Another plan would be to make a lot of noise right now, then hide in the dragon's old cave under the castle. It's fairly close, and very few people know about it. Then, we just have to wait for most of the guards to find us gone and head out into the lower town to look. However, since we're not supposed to know about that, we're going to take a more direct approach."

Leon followed Merlin as he crept silently through the dungeons. It was amazing how quiet the warlock could be when he was trying. The paused at the end of the passageway where they could see two guards playing dice. There was no way that either of them would be able to sneak by.

Merlin must have seen something in Leon's expression because he just rolled his eyes and turned to focus on the guards. Their dice rather suspiciously rolled from the table and down another passage. One of the guards was actually stupid enough to follow them. Merlin whispered a word, and the other fell asleep. The two fugitives quickly ran past the guard with no one the wiser.

This happened a few more times before they finally left the dungeons, and Leon became more incredulous each time. He had to physically stop himself from returning to berate the guards.

"Merlin, no secret passages, remember?" Leon whispered when the warlock turned down a narrow passage behind a tapestry.

Merlin shook his head. "It's a servant's passage. Most people know where they are. They aren't secret."

The warlock's words were confirmed moments later when they almost ran into Gale of all people. He was actually carrying a battered sword in his arms as he hurried along. The two fugitives ducked into a small alcove just in time so that he didn't notice them.

"What was Gale doing?" Leon asked. It was far too late at night for him to have been helping the king with weapons.

"Gale's brother is a guard here. He's been teaching him swordplay whenever they both get a chance. I think you saw him take out a bandit a while ago," Merlin explained.

Leon nodded. That made sense, though he didn't see why Gale was so determined to learn to fight. The life of a servant wasn't exactly dangerous. Though, if Arthur started treating Gale like Merlin, then it might turn out to be.

The two continued on their way, and was beyond convinced that they would be discovered. They had already lasted far longer than he had believed possible. A shadow twitched out of the corner of his eye, and he jumped, his heart racing.

Merlin laughed. "It was just a mouse," he explained. The warlock looked far too calm in Leon's opinion. "Let's hope no one's in the kitchens."

They proceeded through a doorway into what appeared to be a large pantry. Merlin quickly ran to the other side where another door was located. He cautiously pulled it open and peered into the next room. The warlock silently crept around the door, and Leon followed suit.

He glanced cautiously around as they tiptoed through the large kitchen. The fire had been banked for the night, and it seemed as if the kitchen staff had gone to bed. "They're early risers, not late workers," Merlin explained. "The only time you'll see the kitchen busy this late at night is on the day of a feast. Sometimes on the day before, as well." Leon was really going to have to pay more attention to what parts of the castle were deserted at different times of the day. Right after he berated the dungeon guards.

The warlock had already turned down another corridor when Leon snapped himself out of his thoughts. The knight hurried to catch up, and Merlin gave him a disapproving look. "No one's working right now, but some people –Gwaine- have been known to sneak down here for a midnight snack. Staying in the kitchen is a terrible idea."

The passageway actually opened directly onto a lower street in the lower town. It must have travelled underground for a short distance to reach beneath the castle walls. That may have been the most anticlimactic escape Leon had ever experienced. "Just how much practice have you had in breaking out of places?" the knight asked. He and Merlin had just ducked into a narrow alley between two houses.

Merlin grinned. "A little bit too much for my comfort. I can't remember the last time I was locked up, though."

Leon frowned. "Arthur didn't lock you up at all?"

Merlin shrugged. "After he found out about my magic?" The warlock shook his head. "I pretty much just became Mordred's problem for a while. Arthur may have been angry and confused, but I don't think he could justify me being an actual threat to Camelot."

"I don't think anyone could, Merlin. Although, this ability to sneak around is getting rather suspicious."

"I said I wasn't a threat to Camelot, not that I obey all of its laws." The two fugitives became silent as a knight walked past their hiding place. He seemed rather bored, and Leon added another person to his list. "Let's go," Merlin whispered.

Leon followed the former servant down a series of twisting and confusing streets while keeping an eye out for any more knights or guards. Merlin didn't seem too concerned, though.

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Arthur walked into the round table meeting the next morning to find Leon sitting with his head in his hands and Merlin sitting smugly across the table. Both seemed slightly tired, but they were both used to working on little sleep, so the king wasn't too concerned.

"How did it go?" Arthur finally asked when neither spoke. The other members of the round table were slowly making their way into the room. Emily had chosen to spend the morning elsewhere with Gwen.

Leon just groaned. "We made it to the forest," Merlin finally laughed. "Absolutely no one saw us, and it barely even took an hour once we began our escape. We then snuck back into the castle after waiting outside for an hour. We had still not been noticed as missing, so we locked ourselves back into our cell."

"Are you sure you just didn't make it up?" Arthur asked, deliberately provoking the warlock.

Merlin just glared. "On my honor, Camelot needs better security," Leon confirmed.

The other knights laughed. Leon had been so convinced that they wouldn't be able to escape. Actually, Arthur had been half wondering whether it was possible. He had ultimately decided not to be surprised by anything that Merlin could do, though.

Gwaine was looking quite entertained by the whole affair, as were Percival and Elyan to some degree. Mordred didn't seem surprised, but Arthur imagined he was amused that the normally assured Leon had been proven wrong. Mordred looked up to the senior knight quite a bit.

Arthur was about to ask for more detail when the warning bell suddenly rang out. Everyone leapt to their feet, and Gale scrambled after Arthur as he and Merlin led the knights out of the chamber. Guards were streaming in the direction of the courtyard while everyone else was running the other way. The king loosened his sword in its sheath, and followed the guards.

He could hear strange noises as he approached the front doors of the castle. They threw open the large doors, and Arthur took a moment to assess the scene in front of him. Five beasts that he recognized as Wyvern were flying over the castle and lower town. Arthur's first instinct was to lead the knights against the beasts, and he had almost taken a step forward before he stopped himself and looked at the man next to him. Merlin looked rather panicked, but they both knew that he didn't have a choice.

The dragon lord stepped forward and roared a string of foreign words into the sky. Arthur was never going to get used to that. However, it seemed to be mostly effective. Three of the five Wyvern turned and flew off in the direction of the Perilous Lands.

"It's Morgana's magic again," Merlin informed the knights and rather shocked guards- they hadn't known about him yet- surrounding him. "She seems to have taken a liking to enchanting Wyvern. I wonder whether Aithusa's helping with that."

"Get rid of the last two, then we can discuss it," Arthur commanded.

Merlin called out another string of commands, and the two remaining beasts came to land in the courtyard. Their attention was focused on Merlin as he continued to speak, and Arthur had to stare down a few of the guards and non-round table knights who seemed to want to attack- Merlin or the Wyvern, he wasn't sure. Finally, the two beasts flew off in a different direction than the others. "I've sent them to harass Morgana. She can't keep attacking us."

Arthur nodded in approval. If they continued to do nothing about her attacks, eventually one was going to slip past their guard. "It's over," the king called out to everyone within earshot. "Leon, take the knights and find out what the damage is. Have all of the injured brought directly to Gaius. He can use an extra room if he needs it. Merlin, we're going to have to deal with the council after this. They aren't going to be happy for a wide variety of reasons."

Merlin groaned as he followed his king back inside.

* * *

So, they're actually going to be able to explain things to the council next chapter. I'm also hoping to get in a lighthearted scene with the knights, king, queen, Merlin, and Emma just hanging out together before Morgana attacks.

Please review!


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin.

It looks like there might be three more chapters? I know what still has to happen, but I haven't written it yet.

Hopefully this satisfies those who wanted more Merlin/Emma. Let me know.

* * *

Merlin went looking for Gwen and Emma while Arthur gathered the council. The two women would most likely wish to be present. Just as he turned down a deserted hallway, he heard a shriek. Rounding the corner at a run, he saw that it was Emma who had made the sound. Tinvale was holding a narrow sword at her throat. "Get away from me!" Emma growled at him. "I've done nothing wrong. I don't even have magic."

"I, however, do," Merlin said as he stopped a few feet away. "Let her go, Tinvale." The warlock clenched his fists, and he could feel that his magic was barely in check.

"You're next, boy," the Earl hissed. "You've polluted the king's mind with your magic for too long."

"I'm going to give you one more chance to step away." Much as he wanted to hurt Tinvale, Merlin knew that it wasn't a smart move at the present moment.

Merlin raised a hand in what he hoped was a menacing manner. He hadn't had much chance to threaten people openly with magic in the past, so it was learn as he went. "What can your pathetic parlor tricks do to me?" Tinvale sneered.

"You can go ahead and attack him if he doesn't let her go in two seconds," a voice said from behind Merlin. He quickly recognized it as that of the queen. Gwen walked to stand next to Merlin, but he didn't relax at all.

"Your Majesty, I was simply-" Tinvale didn't get the chance to finish. Merlin burned the sword from his grip, and threw the Earl against the wall slightly harder than was necessary.

Emma's eyes widened, then she ran into his embrace. Merlin could feel her trembling slightly, but she seemed to be fine for the most part. Emma was one of the strongest people he had ever met, and that included Gwen and his mother. Merlin belatedly realized that he was also shaking, but out of anger more than anything else. He had to fight to keep his magic from boiling out of him, so he just buried his face against Emma's hair.

After a moment, he looked up. "Gwen, could you get a couple of the knights to lock him up. If you see him, could you also tell Arthur I'm going to be a little bit late to the council meeting."

"You can go to the meeting. I'm fine, Merlin," Emma protested. She leaned back slightly to look up at him.

"I'm not," he told her honestly. Only a few times in his life had he been this angry, and things usually didn't turn out so well for those around him when that happened.

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Percival followed the queen down the hallway along with Gwaine, Elyan, and Mordred. He wasn't sure what was happening, but if Gwen looked that angry, then it was nothing good. After a few moments, three figures came into view. Merlin had an arm wrapped around Emily, and Earl Tinvale was sitting against a wall across from them. The noble looked rather terrified, but Merlin looked murderous. Percival actually paused for a moment at the glare.

"Take him to the dungeons, please," Gwen commanded them. "Tinvale decided to attack Lady Emily, and he shall be dealt with properly."

Percival quite happily helped Gwaine haul the shaking man to his feet. The queen rarely showed anger, and everyone knew to be afraid when she did.

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Merlin led Emma back to his tower. Mordred was going to follow in a few minutes to stay with her while Merlin went to the council meeting. The warlock wasn't going to take any more chances with her safety.

The bottom floor of the tower with the round table as well as the bedroom had both been cleaned out, and were livable, if a little sparsely furnished. Merlin and Emma were currently working on sorting through the mess in the library. They hadn't even touched the workroom yet. It was at the round table that they sat down. The symbols for dragon and grace had already appeared.

"I promise I'm fine, Merlin," Emma said as she took his hands. He could still feel the tension in them, though. "I'm a druid. I'm not a stranger to being threatened by the people of Camelot."

Merlin smiled at her, and he finally felt most of the tension leave him. "I know. That could have gone badly, though. Please don't go anywhere alone until all this is resolved."

Emma took a moment to kiss him. "I'll let Mordred babysit me because I know it's the smart thing to do, because I like him, and because I know it'll make you feel better."

"And because you want his help sorting through the library," Merlin added. He laughed when Emma's face lit up.

"I hadn't even thought of that, but, yes, he's absolutely helping."

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"Where is that servant of yours, Sire?" Wells asked. Arthur sighed. The council had convened a half hour ago, and Merlin still had yet to show up. Gwen had said he would be late, but the king wanted to know what was going on.

"He wouldn't be late for this without good reason," Arthur assured the Duke for probably the fifth time. "Now, back to the matter at hand. You've all seen Merlin use magic to send away the Wyvern. Without his help, there would have been significantly more damage. Merlin has not once acted with the intent of harming Camelot. I cannot and will not believe that magic corrupts everyone who uses it."

"I think we can all agree that Merlin isn't evil," Duke Woodland agreed.

The man in question strode into the room at that moment. He had his cloak on, and Arthur caught a hint of anger on his face. The other council members probably wouldn't have caught that emotion, but the king new Merlin well enough to see it. "We've been wondering why you're late," Arthur said when Merlin didn't immediately speak.

"My apologies," Merlin addressed the council. "Lady Emily is completely fine. However, Earl Tinvale has just attempted to attack her. He is now in the dungeons by order of the queen who was also a witness." The speech sounded slightly rehearsed to Arthur even though it was Merlin's usual jumbled mess of words.

"She's fine?" Duke Woodland asked.

Merlin nodded. "Completely. She's with Mordred right now, and he isn't going to let anything happen to her." The Duke seemed to relax.

"What exactly happened?" Cane asked suspiciously. Arthur noted with some happiness that most of the council members shot him dirty looks for his tone. The Wyvern attack must have changed a few minds about what was and wasn't needed to defend the kingdom.

Merlin came to stand next to Arthur. "Tinvale had his sword at her throat. I told him to back away. He refused. The queen arrived and gave me permission to make him let her go, so I knocked him unconscious for about a minute. Emma was fine, and a few knights locked him up." And he wouldn't be escaping anytime soon, Arthur thought privately. Leon had been working tirelessly to fix Camelot's security.

"You dare to refer to a Lady so casually?" Lord Cane queried. Of course that would be what he got from Merlin's statement.

"Lord Cane, I'll thank you to let me defend my own daughter," Woodland growled. Cain gestured for him to proceed, but Woodland remained silent. Arthur could practically hear Merlin's smug grin next to him, and several of the council members had to hide similar expressions.

"Now that Merlin is here, I'm going to relate to you several of the reasons that we owe him our lives. Feel free to ask him questions," Arthur stated. "Merlin was the only reason we've driven immortal armies from Camelot. He has helped to make sure that we have food and fresh water on several different occasions. He also defeated the sorceress Nimueh who was bent on our destruction, and before defeating Agravaine, Merlin worked to thwart all of his plans. Merlin has saved my life more times than either of us can count, and he never once plotted to kill me. Morgana actually managed to enchant him to assassinate me not too long ago, and he didn't even use his magic to try to pull it off, despite the spell. I can guarantee you that Merlin poses no danger to Camelot."

"You do not hate Camelot for killing your kind?" a Lord asked curiously.

Merlin shook his head. "Uther instilled quite a lot of fear into the hearts of everyone in this kingdom. Some of that fear was justified. Mages can be evil, and they're often impossible to stop. Arthur, however, is not Uther. He can see that people with magic choose whether to be good or bad. I was never fond of Uther, but my loyalties lie with Arthur and with Camelot, as they always will."

To Arthur's delight, many of the council members seemed pleased with the warlock's reply.

"Just how powerful are you, boy?" Wells asked. "Perhaps you simply don't have enough magic to corrupt you."

Arthur glared at the Duke's tone, but was amused by Merlin's shifting. "Honestly, I'm not sure. I have a great deal of power," the warlock finally answered.

"That's a modest reply," Arthur added. "He's more powerful than Morgana. If magic was going to corrupt anyone, it would be him." The king stood. "I'm going to leave you with those thoughts, and with the knowledge that Morgana is just going to keep attacking Camelot. My knights and I have done everything we can think of to prepare."

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Emma looked up as Merlin and Arthur entered the warlock's library. She and Mordred had been sorting through scattered fragments of books for the past hour, and the room was actually beginning to come together. She accepted Merlin's hand up from her place on the floor and chose to keep hold of it. "How did it go?" she asked worriedly.

Merlin grinned. "Actually, really well," he replied. Emma loved his smile. It wasn't that he hadn't been smiling lately, but this was the grin that he wore when she first told him she loved him and when he told her that Arthur had accepted his secret. It was the grin that was just so purely _Merlin_ that let her know everything would be more than okay.

"It's really only Wells and Cane putting up opposition at this point," Arthur added. "Some of the council have probably realized that we need Merlin to fight Morgana, but it seems like a large portion of them were just waiting to make sure that I was serious about legalizing magic."

Emma couldn't stop smiling. Her people were finally going to be free!

They heard a clatter downstairs just then, and Gale's head appeared on the stairs from below. "The knights and queen are here," he announced.

Arthur nodded. "They wanted to see Merlin's tower," he explained as the five went downstairs. Everyone managed to crowd around the small round table. It even obligingly added symbols as extra chairs were pulled up.

Gwaine whistled. "This is nice, Merlin. I'm quite jealous," the knight said.

"He's going to outrank you soon, Gwaine," Emma teased. "Of course you should be jealous."

Gwaine pouted while Merlin laughed. "That reminds me," Arthur said as he stood up. "This probably won't be official for a while, but Merlin is now unofficially my Court Sorcerer."

"Really?" Elyan asked sarcastically. "We thought you were giving the Court Sorcerer's chambers to him because you wanted to promote him to head servant."

Emma clapped a hand to her mouth to muffle her giggles. Gwaine and Gwen had no such hesitations, though, and openly laughed at their king. Even Gale seemed amused from where he was squished in between Leon and Percival.

"We may have to limit our round table meetings to the actual round table," Mordred commented as he accidentally knocked into Elyan. Both fell backwards onto the floor.

"I second that," Elyan agreed, wincing.

"That might be a good idea," Merlin agreed. "At some point, I'm going to have to start sorting through my workroom, and I really don't need people walking in on me when I'm trying to get rid of a dangerous spell."

Despite the cramped seating arrangement, the Round Table stayed talking late into the night. Emma let her head drift onto her warlock's shoulder after a while and just enjoyed the lighthearted atmosphere. Morgana was still a threat hanging over them, but magic was slowly being brought back to Camelot, and the druid prophecies were being fulfilled. It was a night to celebrate.

* * *

Get ready for Morgana to make an appearance finally! It'll happen in the next chapter or the one after. Merlin's reveal to her is coming up.

Please review! Constructive criticism is appreciated and will not make me mad.


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin.

There are two more chapters after this, I think. Sorry for the delay in posting this. Hopefully I'll get the last two written soon. Enjoy!

* * *

 _Morgana was still a threat hanging over them, but magic was slowly being brought back to Camelot, and the druid prophecies were being fulfilled. It was a night to celebrate._

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"Then it is agreed," Arthur announced to the council the following morning. "Merlin and Mordred shall be granted special dispensation to practice magic with the understanding that it is in the process of being legalized." The council had convened early that morning, and, despite a few protestors, most of its members seemed relieved that the ban on magic was going away. It wouldn't happen immediately, of course. All of the laws regarding the uses of magic would have to be put into place first.

"There is one more thing, Sire," the Duke of Woodland said. Arthur looked to the smiling man. "Many of us have been wondering whether you will be reinstating the position of Court Sorcerer. He used to be quite an important member of the council."

The king's reply was cut off by Wells's sneer. "We cannot possibly approve of such an action. Where would we ever find a powerful sorcerer loyal to us?" the man asked. Arthur didn't even bother to hide his glare. He could almost feel Mordred laughing behind him, though he didn't turn to look.

"We have powerful allies," Arthur said calmly. He wanted Wells to look the fool. "You are aware that Mordred is a druid. You may not be aware that he's considered quite powerful among them."

"So you propose that we give him a place on the council?" Wells laughed. "He's young and has barely been living here for a year. It isn't a good idea."

"Of course it isn't," Arthur agreed. He shrugged. "I'm proposing we give Merlin a place on the council." The council once again erupted into chaos, and Arthur was getting quite tired of it. "Enough!" he bellowed. Everyone fell silent. "You have all agreed that Merlin is extremely loyal to me and to Camelot. Let me add the fact that he's incredibly powerful. Give me one reason why I should not name him Court Sorcerer."

Arthur, Merlin, and Mordred walked out of the council chamber ten minutes later feeling quite pleased. The king was just watching his warlock grin. He didn't think Merlin had ever been so happy as he had been for the past few months. So, he knew something was wrong when both Merlin and Mordred frowned. A chill ran up the king's spine.

"It's Morgana," Mordred stated.

"She's coming," Merlin clarified as he clutched his head. "I can feel her screaming in the back of my head. I'm not sure whether she's ever been this angry."

"She knows that a mage is preventing her attacks from working."

"How close is she?" Arthur asked. The three had frozen in the middle of the hallway.

Merlin shook his head. "I don't know, but she's angry enough that she's projecting it all the way here. She has to at least be within the borders of Camelot."

Arthur took a deep breath. "Mordred, go tell Leon what's happening," he instructed. "He'll need to prepare our defenses. Then we're calling a round table meeting. I want Gwen and Emily there as well, Merlin."

The two ran off in opposite directions as Arthur headed to the round table's chamber, lost in thought.

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Gwaine looked up in surprise as Mordred dashed into the armory where the other round table knights were currently taking off their armor. They had been training for most of the morning.

"What's wrong?" Leon immediately asked. The senior knight always got right to business. Gwaine would've made a joke first.

"Morgana," Mordred answered. "She's on her way to the city. Put the guards on alert, then come to the round table."

Gwaine raised his eyebrows. He had assumed that the council meeting had gone badly. Elyan echoed those thoughts out loud.

Mordred shook his head. "No, they're actually going to legalize magic. It's been officially agreed." Gwaine could see the druid grinning despite the situation.

"They've finally come to their senses!" he cheered.

"Go," Leon instructed. "I'll be there in a few minutes."

Gwaine followed the other knights out of the armory and to the round table's chamber where Arthur was already waiting. He looked extremely tense as the knights took their seats. Gwaine barely even paid attention to the swirling gold symbols. Merlin dashed in with the queen and Emily a minute later.

"What do we do?" the king asked.

Merlin shrugged. "There isn't much we can do until we know what's coming," the warlock said. "Mordred and I have been putting up wards around the city walls, so she'll meet some resistance, but it won't be much."

"The guards have been doubled, and the knights are patrolling the city and surrounding area," Leon announced, walking in.

"So," Gwaine began. "The question now, Merlin, is whether you can beat Morgana."

The warlock groaned. "Morgana operates one of two different ways," he explained. "She can be calm and manipulative, in which case I could probably beat her by power alone. However, her rage allows her to channel so much more powerful magic. The drawback there is that she won't be thinking clearly, and I could probably out-maneuver her."

"What's the problem then?" Gwaine asked, detecting a worried tone in his friend's voice.

"She'll already have made a plan for this very situation. Morgana's smart enough to have planned this all out to the last detail. Her anger right now is giving her power, and her plan won't be hastily constructed."

Merlin and Mordred both suddenly gasped. "She's here!" Mordred breathed.

"She's attacking our wards," Merlin agreed. "We're out of time."

Gwaine loosed his sword in its sheath as everyone ran up to the battlements of the castle. The stones beneath their feet were shaking as some kind of magical missiles were launched over the walls. From what Gwaine could see, though, Morgana only had about twenty others with her. They all seemed to have magic, but he had expected more.

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Merlin remained on the wall with Gwen and Emma as the others ran to get into position to fight the small army off. "What can I do?" Emma asked.

"Go help Gaius," he instructed. "Very few others have knowledge of healing in this city, and he's going to need all the help he can get."

She nodded and ran off, Gwen following behind. That left Merlin alone. The warlock crouched down and sent his senses out to the wards around the city. They were quickly failing. Morgana would be in the city within minutes. He quickly set a few more wards to block their path before looking back out over the walls.

Just as he felt the last of his wards fail, Morgana and her soldiers froze in place. They seemed to be chanting something, but Merlin couldn't make out the words. It was very clear what the spell was designed to do, though. Great golems rose up out of the ground, large creatures of dirt and stone. They cleared the way into the city for Morgana's people without hesitation.

Merlin rapidly sent out spells as Arthur led the charge against the assailants on the streets below. He made sure to stay out of sight as Morgana still didn't know he had any talent. The warlock himself managed to take out at least five mages, and he could see Mordred subtly using spells in addition to his sword.

Morgana was flinging spells left and right. The anger practically rolled off of her. Merlin barely managed to throw up a shield in front of the knights in a few instances.

The fighting lasted for the better part of an hour. The knights and mages chased each other all through the lower town. The only reason none of the knights were lost was that Morgana hadn't seemed to have worked out that Emrys was fighting with them.

Finally, Arthur called a retreat behind the castle walls. The portcullis slammed into place just as one of the golems made contact with it, raining dirt and stones everywhere. Merlin left his post on the wall and dashed down to the courtyard to meet the knights.

"She definitely knows what she's doing," Arthur gasped as he favored his left arm. "This isn't just blind rage. I need options."

"She doesn't know about me yet," Merlin stated. "I'm pretty sure she knows that Mordred's fighting with you, though she might not have realized that you know about his magic. She probably also suspects that a more powerful mage is helping you out."

"Can we use that?" Arthur asked.

Merlin realized that this was one of the first times the king had ever asked him for advice in battle, and he almost grinned. "I can't take her down like this. She'll probably kill me before I even get close. I think she's feeding off of the other mage's magic as well."

"Most of them are dead," Mordred pointed out.

"That makes it a little bit easier. What I really need is for her to use a powerful spell that isn't directed at me. I can probably hurt her if she drains a lot of magic for a moment."

"Isn't she doing that already?" Leon asked.

Merlin shook his head. "The fireballs and other spells she's throwing are very destructive, but they really aren't that hard to use. I need her to deliberately use more power."

"What does Morgana think of servants?" a voice asked. Merlin turned to see Gale approaching, sword in hand. "Let's beat her at her own manipulative games."

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So, I swear that Morgana is actually going to speak in the next chapter, and the reveal to her is going to happen. Sorry, but Emma isn't a warrior, so she doesn't have a lot to do right now. She'll be in the final chapter.

Please review!


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin.

This is the second-last chapter. The final one is basically just wrapping up loose ends.

I hope you enjoy this.

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Percival and the other knights drew their swords as Morgana's golems finally managed to break down the gates. He took one last glance around as Morgana's forces streamed into the courtyard. Merlin and Gale both stood back behind the knights while the king had chosen to stand in front. The witch herself led her few remaining golems as well. None of her mages were to be found. Percival smirked.

"Leave my kingdom, Morgana," Arthur ordered once the witch had come to a stop across from them. Her golems froze in place at a wave of her hand. They seemed almost to be statues.

"It's my kingdom, dear brother," she laughed. "Surrender or die."

"We were going to offer you the same deal!" Gwaine called over to her. Percival cringed as she turned her head to the knight.

"What do I possibly have to gain from that? I'm going to win. What is there to stop me?"

"You may have power, Morgana, but you're alone," Arthur told her.

"That's your greatest downfall." Morgana's face twisted into a smug smile. "The very magic that you hunt down is what will allow me to kill you."

"This is your last chance, Morgana. Leave."

"Oh no. I plan to see you suffer before I claim my kingdom."

"What are you plans?"

"I'm afraid you'll have to wait. I'm starting with the backstabbing traitor." Percival immediately looked at Mordred who was doing a terrible job at looking concerned.

"I won't allow you to harm my knights, Morgana," Arthur warned.

Morgana waved a hand and whispered as Arthur went to take a step forward, and his legs seemed to freeze in place. Percival experimentally tried to move his own legs, but it was as if his feet had been tied to the ground. None of the knights could do anything as the witch walked among them. He could only hope that Gale and Merlin had been forgotten in the background.

"Surely you'll allow me Mordred," Morgana drawled as she whispered another spell. I strip of fabric wound its way around Mordred's mouth. "He has betrayed you, after all." She laughed at the king's look of confusion. Arthur was quite the actor when he had to be. "Oh, didn't you know? Mordred practices magic." Her statement was followed by the stunned silence which she was probably hoping for until Arthur started laughing. Morgana glared. "It's the truth."

"I'm aware. You didn't really think I was foolish enough to face you with nothing more than my sword, did you?"

The shocked expression on her face was answer enough. "You despise magic."

"No, my father did, and we both know very well that I'm not him."

"I've had enough of this. Mordred is of no use to you now, so surrender."

"I have other allies, Morgana."

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh? I don't see any of them. Your precious Emrys isn't here to save you now."

"Isn't he?" Arthur challenged.

Percival knew that was his que to act. He caught sight of Gale edging his way along the edge of the courtyard, and he assumed that Merlin had taken up an unobtrusive post elsewhere. The strong knight whispered a single word under his breath, hoping that it would actually cause his eyes to glow. Merlin had taught it to him only recently.

The witch was thrown backwards at the same instant. Percival was relieved that Merlin's spell had been timed correctly with his own. He checked to make sure Mordred's amulet was around his neck as Morgana stood up, enraged. She flung a particularly nasty-looking spell at him, but a shield jumped up between them. The beauty of the amulet was that Mordred could protect him without using words. It simply drew on the druid's power.

"That won't be enough to stop me, Morgana," Percival taunted.

The witch screamed in rage, and Percival could tell that this was it. She began screaming out a long string of words, and black tendrils began to reach out towards him. Just as Mordred's shield seemed about to give out under their strain, though, the tendrils pulled back slightly. Morgana had whirled around as Gale swung his sword at her. The two now engaged in a battle of their own. Gale's sword had been hastily enchanted to withstand minor spells, which were all that Morgana was able to create at that point. Whatever the black mist had been intended to do definitely took a great deal out of her. Gale, for his part, was expertly blocking everything she threw at him. Percival and the other knights suddenly found themselves free as Morgana lost concentration.

Merlin strode past all of them with a hand stretched forward, his eyes blazing the brightest gold Percival had ever seen. It was clear that Morgana hadn't even been looking for him. She hated him a great deal, but it seemed that Merlin had been correct in guessing that she didn't perceive him as any kind of physical threat.

Morgana suddenly staggered, and Gale took the opportunity to run back to the knights. The witch and the warlock were left alone in the center of the courtyard. "What?" she shrieked.

Merlin simply continued to do whatever it was he was doing. Percival really wasn't sure. Morgana didn't seem happy about it, though. The knights could do nothing but watch.

"There's no possible way you're doing this," Morgana accused Merlin. "This is some kind of trick." She didn't look like she believed herself.

"Doesn't everything make more sense now?" Merlin asked quietly. His eyes had faded back to their normal color for the moment, but Morgana hadn't made a move against him. "You never could figure out how I kept outsmarting you."

"It's been you this whole time!" she hissed. "I should have killed you sooner. How could your loyalties lie with Arthur? He's done nothing but hunt down our kind."

"He isn't Uther," Merlin argued, his voice gaining volume. "Uther would have killed me on the spot. Arthur decided to legalize magic. You aren't fighting for equality, you're fighting for revenge."

Merlin's eyes glowed again, and Morgana sank to her knees. "What are you doing?" she gasped.

"Draining you of your magic. You're a disgrace to my kind and the reason that people fear us. I don't want to kill you, Morgana, but I will make sure that you can't harm anyone ever again."

"You don't have the power!" she shrieked again. Her eyes widened after a moment. "No. It isn't possible. You're an old man!"

"I was born with magic, Morgana. I've been using it instinctually for far longer than you. I _am_ Merlin, but the druids call me Emrys."

Everything happened next in a split second before Percival could react. Morgana drew a bejeweled dagger and threw it straight at the king just as a large flash of light consumed her. By the time Percival had finished blinking stars out of his eyes, she was gone. He spun to look at the king to see that Mordred had managed to halt the blade in midair, a handbreadth from his chest. The dagger clattered to the ground, and everyone let out a breath.

"Is she gone?" Arthur finally asked to break the silence.

Merlin shrugged. "She isn't here anymore, but I'm not certain whether my spell worked or how she got away. I could feel the power draining from her. Even if my spell didn't run to completion, it's going to take years before she'll become a significant threat again. The warlock waved a hand, and the golems broke apart into dirt which scattered into the wind. "It's over."

Percival joined in with the other knights as they cheered. He didn't even try to stop the grin from spreading across his face. They had won.

"Merlin!" Emma shrieked as she ran out into the courtyard. "You're safe!" Merlin caught the druid in his arms with a grin.

"I told you I'd be fine," he told her.

Percival glanced over to where Arthur was getting much the same treatment from Gwen. "Next to no injuries," the queen was telling her husband. "Gauis needed some help for about an hour, but he's dealing with everything fairly well on his own. It seems that Merlin kept most of our people safe."

"Good work everyone," Arthur addressed the members of the round table. "I couldn't be more proud of everyone here. You've all proven ten times over that you deserve to be knights of Camelot. That being said, there is one person in particular who needs a promotion." The king turned to his servant. "Gale, today you displayed exceptional bravery and loyalty. These are qualities that I need in my knights. If you are willing, I would like to make you my squire. In a few years, we might be calling you Sire Gale."

Gale was beaming. "Actually, Sire, I believe I'll use my full name. One day, I'll be Sir Galahad."

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Who saw Galahad coming? I probably didn't make it that obvious.

One chapter to go!

Please review!


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin.

This is the last chapter, and it's fairly short. I'm just trying to wrap up the story. I've set it up for a potential sequel which will hopefully revolve around Gwaine travelling to Caerleon and dealing with his past. I'm not sure when I will start the sequel, or even if I will.

I'm also considering a short prequel about Arthur finding out about Merlin's magic. It'll be a more detailed version of the events described in earlier chapters.

Finally, I really want to write a time travel fic about season 1-3 Arthur ending up in a time maybe a year after this story. I think that would be hilarious. Maybe season 3 Gwaine can come along for the ride too!

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"I hope that today becomes a joyous day that will live on in memory. Today, magic becomes legal!" the king concluded his speech to a stunned crowd. Mordred grinned as at least half of the citizens of Camelot began to cheer. He noted the ones who seemed particularly unhappy, but they were few and far between. A few seconds later, it hit him, and he felt tears running down his face. He was finally free. Merlin clapped him on the shoulder, and he saw that Emrys was in a similar state.

As the wondering crowd began to disperse, Emma ran over to hug Merlin. She looked as if she was ready to dance for the rest of her life. Her people, and his, were free.

Emma stepped back as Arthur approached Merlin. The rest of the round table crowded around. "I would like to formalize your new status in Camelot," the king said.

Merlin grinned. "Is it hard to actually award me for something?" the warlock teased.

"Would you rather be made my manservant again? That can be arranged." Everyone laughed. Gwen handed her husband an intricate medallion on a chain. Mordred didn't recognize the design though he knew what it was for. "I, Arthur Pendragon, king of Camelot, hereby appoint you, Merlin Emrys, as Court Sorcerer of Camelot. May you serve and protect the kingdom with courage and strength." He was definitely going to need them.

Merlin bowed his head to allow the king to hang the medallion over his head. When he looked up, he was beaming.

Gale was present as well. No longer a servant, Squire Galahad was well on his way to being knighted. Mordred couldn't have been happier for his new friend.

Emma had decided to stay in Camelot too. Her people would always be the druids, but her heart had been in the city for a long time. Close to four years, to be exact. She and Mordred had plans to visit their people from time to time. Now that magic had been legalized, they also had hopes that some of the druids would visit the city, on market days if not all the time. The knights had started a betting pool on how long it would take Merlin to ask her to marry him. Gwaine had already lost with his bet of one day.

The city's reconstruction was progressing slowly, but Mordred had hopes that the people would begin to accept magical aid.

Merlin and Arthur's destinies were only beginning, and Mordred looked forward to seeing where they would go.

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Mordred found himself seated at the round table a few weeks later. It seemed their celebrations were to be short-lived.

"We need to take care of this before it gets worse," Arthur was saying. Apparently, several of the surrounding kingdoms were anywhere from concerned to hostile about the new legalization of magic. "I'm sending you out in pairs to try to convince everyone that we haven't lost our minds. Merlin and Mordred are going to visit the druids first before coming around to briefly visit the kingdoms where you are. They will be in touch with you as they travel. Do not let them come if it's too dangerous."

"Why is this happening?" Gwaine asked. "Shouldn't they be happy we're done persecuting magic?"

"My father may have been the one to start the war against magic, but he convinced many of them to take up the banner. Those who believed in his views think me to be weak and a fool, and those who support magic are extremely confused by the rapid change in Camelot's ways. I don't want to go to war. The kingdoms will unite."

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This story is now complete.

Please continue to review even thought I'm not writing any more of this fic. I'd love to know that people are still reading it a year from now.


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